On Tuesday (22 Aug) evening in New York City after appearances at the Masters 1000 in Montreal and Cincinnati and just days ahead of the U.S. Open, the world’s number-one ranked tennis star and Dekton spokesperson Rafael Nadal made an appearance at an exclusive cocktail event at the Cosentino Manhattan City Center to help unveil a new collection, the Dekton® Industrial Series..  ... Read more »

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New world No. 1 Rafael Nadal may be the brightest player in tennis right now, but even the two-time US Open champion took a pause from practice Monday to ensure he didn’t miss the solar eclipse.

Rafa paused several times during his practice on Court 17 to look at the natural phenomenon. (via US Open)   ... Read more »

Almost nine years to the day since he first became No. 1, Spain’s Rafael Nadal today returned to the top of the Emirates ATP Rankings for his fourth stint at the pinnacle of men’s professional tennis. Nadal, who has already spent 141 total weeks at No. 1, replaces Great Britain’s Andy Murray, who had held the top spot for 41 weeks since 7 November 2016. ... Read more »

Fifteen-time Grand Slam champion and new world No.1 Rafael Nadal has confirmed his highly anticipated return to the tenth edition of the Brisbane International presented by Suncorp in January.

“A lot of things have happened since the last time I was in this spot. Injuries and some tough moments, of course, but I have held the passion and the love for the game, and that’s why I have the chance to be back in that position again,” Nadal said prior to the Cincinnati Masters last week. ... Read more »

2017 Cincinnati QF Rafael Nadal vs. Nick Kyrgios  2/6 5/7 

Q. How tough is it to play Nick when he's serving so well today?
RAFAEL NADAL: He obviously is a tough match always, no? Nick is a great player, but I played bad, obviously, no?

I started the match well, and then I played a very bad game in the second set when he break me. And then I managed -- I was lucky. I don't know. I played some good points. He had some mistakes and I was able to be back in the match. And then I played terrible game. ... Read more »

2017 Cincinnati R3 Rafael Nadal bt. Albert Ramos-Vinolas  7/6(1) 6/2

Next - Nick Kyrgios 

Q. Can you give us your thoughts about being in the quarterfinals here, and also your thoughts on what happened yesterday in Barcelona.
RAFAEL NADAL: For sure very happy to be in the quarterfinals. Was a tough match this afternoon against Albert, and now another very, very difficult match against Kyrgios, no? ... Read more »

2017 Cincinnati R2 Rafael Nadal bt. Richard Gasquet  6/3 6/4

Next opponent - Albert Ramos-Vinolas

Q. You always talk about the importance of playing with the right intensity and right feelings. Do you feel like you have that right now to make a run here and possibly at the US Open?
RAFAEL NADAL: I don't know. Just the start of the tournament. Was important start for me. Always important to win the first match, especially after what happened last week, losing the match that way. ... Read more »

“Obviously it's bad news for the event that Roger is not playing. For me personally obviously to be back to that position is something special,” Nadal said.

“A lot of things have happened since the last time I was in this spot. Injuries and some tough moments, of course, but I have held the passion and the love for the game, and that's why I have the chance to be back in that position again. So I'm just trying to enjoy the moment and just trying to be ready to compete well here. That's the most important thing for me now.” ... Read more »

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