Nadal to take it easy early in year, but he plans on playing Acapulco

Rafael Nadal says he is looking for more match play following his defeat at the Australian Open, but he won't be adding more events to his schedule.

The world No. 2 entered the tournament not having played an official match since the US Open, as he underwent ankle surgery before the offseason. But despite still getting to the final of Melbourne, Nadal said his lack of competitive play was evident in his straight-sets defeat to an in-form Novak Djokovic in that final.

"I think I was playing great during the both weeks in offensive positions," Nadal said. "But because of the things that happened to me in terms of surgery, then what happened [withdrawing from the exhibition event] in Abu Dhabi, I was not able to work that much the defensive game."

Though saying he was confident he could get back to that level with more matches, the 32-year-old does not plan to increase his schedule.

"I need matches, but I can't go crazy to play matches. I have my age. I have my calendar. I have my priorities," he said. "My priority now is come back home, have some rest. I played good tennis for couple of weeks. Now is the time to be back, to have a good physical work, keep working on the things that worked. Step by step, working on the things that I need a little bit more. That's the mobility, the defensive positions, the recovery from positions that are difficult to come back."

Nadal will now take a few weeks off before returning to competition.

"Then my next step is Acapulco," he said. "I have Acapulco, I have Indian Wells, and that's my calendar today.

"I am sure I am not going to play something before these two events."

Having experienced repeated injury during his career and retired with physical problems at both the 2018 Australian Open and US Open, Nadal is staying cautious.

This Week on Tennis Channel Plus:

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