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AUSTRALIAN OPEN


January 23, 2017


Rafael Nadal


Melbourne, Victoria, Australia

R. NADAL/G. Monfils

6-3, 6-3, 4-6, 6-4

THE MODERATOR: Questions, please.

Q. What does it mean to you to win in four sets?
RAFAEL NADAL: For me means a lot because for me I really start the season playing quarterfinals in a Grand Slam again, especially on hard court after a couple of years without being in this round is a great news.

Yeah, very happy with an important victory against a very good opponent.

Q. You played nine sets in your last two matches. How do you feel physically, given that it was a very hot and humid today?
RAFAEL NADAL: Today was tough. The other day the humidity was less. Even if the match was probably tougher the other day, but today the humidity was much higher, no? The match became little bit tougher.

No, I feel good now. Let's see how I wake up tomorrow morning. You're not going to know after finishing the match. You need to wait.

Q. Even though Monfils came back, did you still feel like you were in control of the match, holding serve more easily than him, keeping on top?
RAFAEL NADAL: I am not this kind of person that are that arrogant, no? When you lost the third, you are down 4-2 in the fourth, you are not under control, no. That's the real thing.

You know that you have a good chance to be in the fifth. 4-3, 30-Love for him. The match was tough. He had chances then. Is true that I had my chances before, but I had some mistakes. He started to serve huge, no?

Sometimes is tough to play against Gael when you don't know what he going to do. First two sets were a little bit more normal, normal tennis. Then he start to play more aggressive. He start to serve huge and play big shots. He combines mistakes with great shots, no? Make you feel that you don't know if you have to go for the points or if you have to wait little bit for his mistake. You see that the opponent is playing a little bit more 50/50, you know. So is not an easy way to play.

But I made it. Positive thing, I keep fighting with positive attitude. Finally I played last few games good.

Q. Against Raonic in the next round, you played him in Brisbane, what could be different this time?
RAFAEL NADAL: I don't know. I don't know what can be different, no? I think going to be a tough match for me, for sure. Hopefully for him, too.

Yeah, in Brisbane he beat me. But at the same time is true that I have been close. A set up and important breakpoint that I had passing shot, no?

Is tough. He's an opponent that make you feel that you're playing with a lot of pressure all the time because his serve is huge and he's playing very aggressive from the baseline. So going to be a very tough match, no?

But I hope to be ready for it. I need to be very focused with my serve and play aggressive. If I am not playing aggressive, then I am dead, because he plays aggressive. You know finally he going to have chances on the return because he decides to play with going for the shots, so...

Q. You were talking on the court about your girlfriend who came to Australia for the first time. Is it a difference mentally?
RAFAEL NADAL: No, not at all.

FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports

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