Nadal optimistic going into Conde Godo tournament

Barcelona, April 23 (IANS) World No.5 Rafael Nadal was in an optimistic mood at the press conference held here for the Conde Godo tennis tournament despite his defeat in Monte Carlo by world No.1 Novak Djokovic.

Nadal, who has won the Conde Godo tournament seven times, said Monday he's very happy to be in Barcelona as it is a Spanish competition and very special for him, reports Xinhua.

Despite his defeat in Monte Carlo, where he had won eight times, Nadal said he came to Barcelona with the same thrill as he had won there.

"I have no negative feelings," he continued. "This is the right path. I have to be positive and do my best."

Asked about his knee lesion, which forced him to be out of the court for seven months, Nadal said "the results are much better than we could ask for" while assuring that he had no doubt about his continuity.

"When someone is out for seven months and has to compete again and has not done that for a long time, various problems may appear and he may need a retraining to the competition," he explained.

Nadal is being tipped as the favourite to win at the 61st edition of the Conde Godo Tournament, along with another Spanish player, David Ferrer, the world No.4 who has lost four finals here (in 2008, 2009, 2011 and 2012) to Nadal.