Rafael Nadal admits his body no longer responds as before

Rafa Nadal

Paris, Jan 15 (IANS/EFE)

Spanish tennis ace and World No.3 Rafael Nadal admitted that though his body no longer responds the way it did when he was 20 years old, he still maintains the same determination and the same desire to win titles.

In an interview with the French sports newspaper L'Equipe on Wednesday, the Spaniard, 28, admitted that the older you get, the more difficult it becomes to deliver a high performance.

Nadal, who won the doubles championship in Doha alongside Juan Monaco of Argentina, pointed out that he worked out at a very high rate to keep his performance at the highest level.

"I do what I have to do to restore my best performance. I want to do so," Nadal said, voicing confidence in his ability to do just that.

Nadal acknowledged that in his career he has at times been lucky, because despite facing disappointments, he has experienced a lot of positive moments.

The Spaniard, at the same time, considered himself less fortunate than other competitors like Roger Federer or Novak Djokovic.