No plans to retire, says Ferrer

Abu Dhabi - Spaniard will take on Tsonga today in Mubadala tennis, backs Nadal to regain No 1 ranking

Veteran Spaniard David Ferrer has backed his compatriot Rafael Nadal to rediscover his best form in 2016.
"Last year was not his best year. But I think he will do very well in 2016," the world number seven told reporters ahead of the Mubadala World Tennis Championship.
"As you know he didn't play great tennis in 2015 but don't forget that he still finished in the top five. He played good tennis in the last two months of the year. I think Rafa will be fighting for the world number one spot in 2016 and I am confident that he will start winning Grand Slams again," said Ferrer who lost to Nadal in the ATP World Tour Finals group stage last month.
Ferrer was happy to be part of the Mubadala event once again. "I had a good pre season. I had practised a lot. I am happy to come back to Abu Dhabi again. Now I again have the chance to play good matches against some top players in Abu Dhabi. I hope it will be a good start to the new year for me in Abu Dhabi," the 2013 French Open finalist said.
"Every tournament will be important for me in 2016. Every tournament is difficult. Every match is difficult. There is always pressure on you to play well, to win matches. Of course you want to win every match, but you need to take one step at a time."
The Valencia-based baseliner, who reached a career high ranking of three in 2013, said he might decide against playing some tournaments in 2016 keeping in mind the Rio Olympics.
"Yes, maybe I will play less tournaments this year. The Olympics is a big goal for me. Maybe it's going to be my last Olympic Games and I want to be there. I may skip some of the tournaments before the Olympics to give myself the best shot," he said.
Ferrer won five titles in 2015, but he was also troubled by an elbow injury.
"It was difficult. For the first time in my career, I had a two-month injury layoff. It was a difficult period because I was not able to play tennis. But I worked with my physio and my team. But I came back well, played good tennis. I was happy with the way I was playing towards the end of the season," he said.
Ferrer reached the final at the Mubadala event in 2013 where he lost to world number one Novak Djokovic. But the Spaniard is not eyeing another final appearance in Abu Dhabi.
"Well, Novak is not here this time. He had probably the best year of his career in 2015. But my focus will be on my match against Tsonga on Thursday. If I win, I will get the chance to play Rafa in the semifinal. So the draw is very tough. At the moment I am only focusing on tomorrow's game. It's difficult but I will try my best."
The 34-year-old player said retirement was not on his mind. "No. I'm world number seven. I am enjoying my tennis. Retirement is definitely not on my mind. If I continue to play good tennis and continue to be a top 10 player then there is no reason for me to retire. I want to continue because I love playing tennis."
rituraj@khaleejtimes.com