Does anyone believe that Federer is' excited' to have Nadal back as he is purported to have said?
Probably not - but then nobody knows how well Nadal will perform, or even if his knee will hold out.
For once though (putting excuses one side) I have sympathy for Fed because I've always thought these interviews a bit unfair myself, but the ATP dictates that players either do them or face a penalty.
FEDERER ANNOYED BY RECENT LOSSES, HAPPY WITH GAME [tennis.com, 8 March]
By Matt Cronin
World No. 2 Roger Federer assesses his year to date at Indian Wells. The defending Indian Wells champion, who is seeking his first title of the season, lost to Andy Murray in the semifinals of the Australian Open, fell to Julien Benneteau in the quarterfinals of Rotterdam, and failed to convert three match points in losing to Tomas Berdych in the semifinals of Dubai.
“I think I played really well in Australia, and in Rotterdam I was disappointed with that because I thought I could have done better than that, because I played so well the year before, and I never really got going in the quarters against Benneteau,” he told reporters at Indian Wells. “In Dubai, it was a bit unfortunate losing the three match points.
There’s always that annoying press conference having to explain the loss even though you feel you should maybe be preparing for the final at this point."I’m playing fine. Obviously, I would have hoped to have won a tournament by now, but overall I am happy with my game.”
