January 13, 2008	Sunday	Muharram 03, 1429

MELBOURNE, Jan 12: World number two Rafael Nadal insisted on Saturday he was physically fit for the first Grand Slam of the year despite an embarrassing defeat in the Chennai Open final last weekend.

Nadal was demolished by fourth-seeded Mikhail Youzhny 6-0, 6-1, raising fears that the feisty Spaniard may not be fully fit for the Australian Open.

The 21-year-old called for a trainer midway through the second set of the clash, but said Saturday he was ready for action.

“Physically, there is no problem, so I am very happy about that,” said the muscular left-hander.

He blamed the defeat to Youzhny on tiredness after a four-hour semi-final.

“I was only tired. It was a terrible semi-final, a four-hour match, and I only had less than 24 hours to recover. I went to sleep late because it finished late. It was tough to recover,” he stated.

Nadal, a clay-court specialist, will require all the energy he can muster at Melbourne Park, where he is seeded second.

He only reached the quarter-final last year and failed to progress beyond the fourth round in two earlier appearances here.

He said his preparations this year had been better.

“Last year was probably my worst year, I played bad tennis,” he stated. “This year I am arriving well, practicing well, and I had some matches in Chennai. So I hope all will be fine for Monday.

“It’s going to be interesting, I’m going to try my best and I think I am prepared.”

Nadal has a yet-to-be-decided qualifier first up, and faces a potential quarter-final against American sixth seed Andy Roddick in the bottom half of the draw.—AFP