NEW YORK(AP) Give Rafael Nadal credit for looking on the bright side.
Yes, he's been dealing with knee tendinitis. Yes, his French Open winning streak ended. Yes, he decided not to defend his Wimbledon championship. Yes, he's dropped from No. 1 to No. 3 in the rankings.
On the other hand, while the Spaniard was sidelined, he got to spend time back home on an idyllic island.
``Yeah, maybe I was injured in the worst moment of the season ... one of the most important moments of the season,'' Nadal said Sunday, a day before the U.S. Open begins.
But at the same time,'' he continued through a wide smile,I must have been in Mallorca in the best moment of the season, too.''
Heading into the year's last Grand Slam tournament, the only major event he hasn't won, Nadal is back to his pre-injury practice routine, spending 2 to 2 1/2 hours on court a day.
Still, he didn't sound like someone who thinks he will bring home a title from the U.S. Open this year.
You never know,'' Nadal said,but reaching the quarterfinals or semifinals would be a good result for me.''
He was off the tour for about 2 1/2 months, from a May 31 loss to Robin Soderling in the fourth round of the French Open - ending Nadal's record 31-match winning streak at Roland Garros - to his Aug. 12 return at the hard-court event in Montreal.
Nadal lost in straight sets to Juan Martin del Potro in the quarterfinals there, and he lost in straight sets to Novak Djokovic in the semifinals at Cincinnati the next week.
To those watching with interest, Nadal certainly did not seem to be all the way back.
Roger Federer, the man who replaced Nadal atop the rankings in July, thought Nadal might be dealing with a stomach muscle problem. TV analyst John McEnroe wasn't quite sure what was wrong.
``My concern watching the last couple weeks is there seems to be some rust and his comfort level, movement-wise, is not as smooth and effective,'' McEnroe said.
He's not serving as big. Something's gone off,'' McEnroe added.His knees are OK, but he's gotten a couple nicks and aches and pains.''
Nadal, though, pronounced himself fine on Sunday.
The knees are perfect right now,'' he said.I think everything is OK, so I don't have any problem.''
His first test on the hard courts at Flushing Meadows will come against Richard Gasquet of France, a former top-10 player and 2007 Wimbledon semifinalist coming off a 2 1/2-month suspension for testing positive for cocaine.
Gasquet, ranked 46th, escaped what could have been a much longer ban after telling an anti-doping tribunal that cocaine must have entered his system when he kissed a woman at a nightclub.
While Gasquet was awaiting a final ruling, Nadal stood up for him publicly. They've known each other for about a decade.
I support him a lot. First thing, because I believe in him. Second thing, because I think he's a very nice guy,'' Nadal said.He told me he didn't take nothing. So I believe him 100 percent.''
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NO. 1 TOPIC: After winning Wimbledon, her third title from the past four major tournaments, Serena Williams made some pointed comments about being No. 2 in the rankings behind Dinara Safina.
Safina happens to have zero Grand Slam championships on her resume.
Asked to revisit that topic at Flushing Meadows, Williams wouldn't bite.
``I don't talk about that anymore. I'm sorry,'' the defending U.S. Open champion said during a pre-tournament news conference.
Asked why, Williams replied: ``I've talked about it a lot, and if you want to read some answers that I said, you know, you can, but I think we should talk about something else.''
After a follow-up question, Williams made it clear she wanted to move on, saying: ``Any other questions that's not about No. 1?''
Safina also was asked about the topic. She, too, wasn't interested in a conversation.
Well, you know, I'm not doing the ranking system,'' the Russian said.You know, what can I do? There is ranking, and if you look at the ranking, I'm No. 1 in the world.''
And she still will be two weeks from now - no matter what. According to the WTA, even if Williams were to win the U.S. Open again, she wouldn't surpass Safina in the rankings.
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TEEN VS. TOP: Roger Federer has a pretty good idea how 18-year-old Devin Britton of Jackson, Miss., feels right about now.
Britton, who won the NCAA singles championship for Mississippi in May, will play Federer, of all people, in the first round of the U.S. Open on Monday. It will be Britton's second career tour-level match - and first at a Grand Slam tournament.
Federer, of course, owns a record 15 Grand Slam titles and is ranked No. 1. Britton is tied for 1,370th in the rankings.
Asked about what advice he'd give Britton, Federer recalled being 17 and playing in his hometown of Basel, Switzerland, against Andre Agassi.
That was disbelief. I thought people were kidding me when they told me I was playing Agassi,'' Federer recalled.I was in shock, but you try to enjoy it and try to put in a good fight. This is a bit different. This is a Grand Slam, best-of-five-set match - maybe something Britton has never played before. But a good thing in tennis is you always have a chance. Doesn't matter who you play; where you play.''
Federer lost that 1998 match to Agassi 6-2, 6-3. Indeed, Federer lost each of his first three matches against the American.
But Britton perhaps can take heart from this: After that 0-3 start, Federer wound up going 8-0 against Agassi over the rest of their careers.