Nadal says he will test his knee at Indian Wells

(photo via @jasonWSJ)

NEW YORK — Rafael Nadal might want to make an appointment at one of midtown Manhattan's numerous fortune tellers during his brief stay in the Big Apple Monday.

In town to play Juan Martin del Potro in the BNP Paribas Showdown at Madison Square Garden on Monday night, Nadal admitted that he's not sure how many upcoming hard surface events he's likely to participate in while he recovers from a knee injury.

"I cannot predict the future," Nadal said at a news conference Monday morning. "I have to see how the knee will last at Indian Wells next week. Having the chance to play at Indian Wells is great. I didn't know one week ago if I would be able to play at Indian Wells."

Nadal, who missed seven months of action before returning for Latin American clay court season, beat David Ferrer in the finals of the Mexican Open Saturday. He'll return for his first hard court tournament at the BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells, Calif. this weekend.

"The last couple of days, my knee has been improving," Nadal said. "I go day by day. After seven months with a lot of pain in my knee, I don't have the chance to decide which one will be my schedule for the future. I try to enjoy every one."

"Today I know I can play on clay. I will try next week on the hard. Playing tennis will be a process to adapt my knee to the competition. I hope I will keep having the chances to play the normal calendar as I did in past years."

The nexthard court tournament which Nadal would be expected to participate following Indian Wells is the ATP Sony Open Tennis, which begins March 20 in Miami.

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"Я не могу предсказывать будущее," сказал Надаль на пресс-конференции в понедельник утром в Нью Йорке. "Я должен посмотреть, как колено будет вести себя в Индиан-Уэллс, на следующей неделе. Иметь возможность играть в Индиан-Уэллс - это здорово. Я не знал, неделю назад, буду ли я в состоянии играть в Индиан-Уэллс".
"Последние несколько дней, колени лучше," сказал Надаль. "Я иду вперёд с каждым днем. Через семь месяцев с сильной болью в колене, у меня нет возможности решить, какой будет мой график на будущее. Я стараюсь наслаждаться каждым матчем."
"Сегодня я знаю, что могу играть на грунте. Я попробую на следующей неделе на харде. Игра в теннис будет процессом адаптации колена. Я надеюсь, что я буду  иметь шансы играть с нормальным календарём, как я делал это в прошлые года ".

перевод; Tanika