The Star Online: Sports
The Star Online: Sports |
- Don't expect miracles, warns returning Nadal
- Nabil goes to Europe in search of ultimate dream
- Junior squash champ hopes to scale greater heights next year
| Don't expect miracles, warns returning Nadal Posted: 24 Dec 2012 05:53 PM PST ABU DHABI: Rafael Nadal will make his long-awaited return to tennis after an agonising six-month knee injury battle in the Gulf this week, but has warned he is not expecting any title-winning pyrotechnics. The 26-year-old Spaniard joins world number one Novak Djokovic and third-ranked Andy Murray in the six-player, three-day Mubadala Championships ahead of his return to the ATP circuit at Doha from December 31. Nadal hasn't played since his shock second round exit to 100th-ranked Lukas Rosol at Wimbledon in June, missing the Olympics, the US Open as well as the Davis Cup final against the Czech Republic which his country lost. Although desperate to play again, Nadal is equally keen to play down expectations. "Abu Dhabi is a test. My goal is not this week, not Doha or the Australian Open. My goal is to get fit, recover all my feelings. The only thing I care about is the knee," the seven-time French Open champion said. "The idea is to go from there. I won't give much value to what will happen next month or in two months. My real goal is to start in perfect condition at Indian Wells and Miami and reach Monte-Carlo with good feelings, to face the clay season in good condition." Nadal, an 11-time Grand Slam title winner, has been plagued by knee injuries throughout his career, a legacy of his all-action style. But he shrugged off any fears that despite falling to number four in the world rankings, he is no longer a threat to Djokovic, Murray and world number two Roger Federer. "I haven't forgotten how to play. I have played over 600 ATP matches and I have spent two years without playing. My feeling is good. I won Roland Garros and those emotions are still me," he said. "I know I'm going to play in Abu Dhabi without the knee being great, but I feel better. The doctors say it is fine and that is great news for me. I still feel something, it's not perfect." Nadal insisted he is not bitter over his recent experiences. "I have accepted it as normal, as part of my career, part of my job. It's another challenge," he told marca.com. "All I can do is try. But people have to realise that when you're so many months without competing you need time to progress." The tournament in Abu Dhabi also features world number five David Ferrer of Spain, world number six Tomas Berdych of the Czech Republic and Serb Janko Tipsarevic, the world number nine. Nadal is expected to make his bow on Friday against either Olympic and US Open champion Murray or Tipsarevic. -AFP |
| Nabil goes to Europe in search of ultimate dream Posted: 24 Dec 2012 04:44 PM PST PETALING JAYA: A sore neck was a sobering reminder for Nabil Jeffri of the power of a Formula Three car as he returned home after completing six days of testing in Europe. But the 19-year-old is taking things in his stride and feels there is no turning back as he gets ready to go for his debut season in the German F3 Championship next year. Nabil, who finished runner-up in the JK Racing Asia Series Championship early this month, is on the verge of finalising a sponsorship deal to do three years of racing in the Formula Three series. His ultimate goal is to break into Formula One by 2017. "It (F3) is the next step for me to go after three years of single-seater racing in Asia (JK Racing Asia Series). "Europe is where I have to go now if I am serious in developing my next goal to be a winning professional driver. "I already got a seat offer from Eurointernational and my management team is working on finalising the sponsorship. "We hope to finalise things by next month so that I can focus on getting ready for the new season," said an optimistic Nabil, who finished sixth overall out of 25 drivers in the two-day session in Valencia over the weekend. The session was topped by experienced British F3 International Series driver Carlos Sainz Jr of the Carlin Motorsport team. Sainz Jr was just 0.6 seconds faster than Nabil. Just slightly off the pace set by Sainz Jr was Nabil's Eurointernational team-mate Tom Blomqvist of Britain, who is also a McLaren F1 driver development programme trainee. "That was my second private testing in an F3 car. I did my first testing in Varano, Italy, where I managed to break the circuit's lap record. "I was told I should be doing about 12,000km of testing if I am serious about getting ready and be able to make my presence felt when the season starts in April. "I hope to go for another round of private testing in Italy in February before the actual official testing begins in March," said Nabil. He added that it was an eye-opening experience driving an F3 car. "It was fantastic experience to learn the ins and outs of F3. I am amazed at how fast the car was compared to the previous series I was doing. "The steering felt heavy and you can really feel the downforce. "I thought I was fit but I ended up having a sore neck. "It's something I am getting used to. Now I need to work on raising my fitness level before I return to Europe," said Nabil. |
| Junior squash champ hopes to scale greater heights next year Posted: 24 Dec 2012 04:50 PM PST PETALING JAYA: Youngster Vanessa Raj has already received an early Christmas gift – the Under-19 title in the KL International Junior Open last week. And now, the petite 16-year-old is looking forward to spending some quality time with her friends and family over the festive season before getting back into the thick of action next year. "I actually had my wish and received an early Christmas present already – winning the KL Junior Open. With a higher ranking now and my performance improving as well, there is nothing more I can ask for," said Vanessa. It has been a good year for Vanessa, who is tipped to follow in the footsteps of fellow Penangites Nicol David, the world No. 1, and world No. 7 Low Wee Wern, in setting the world of squash on fire. Besides winning the KL Junior Open and National Junior Championship, Vanessa also did extremely well in the Milo All-Stars, Penang Junior Open and the Asian Juniors. She made the semi-finals in all the three tournaments. Her biggest achievement of the year was reaching the second round of the Malaysian Open in September. She stunned Olga Ertlova of the Czech Republic, the world No. 48, in the first round. That result, followed by another quarter-final appearance in the Penang Open in October, saw Vanessa scale the women's world rankings. She is now ranked No. 86 in the world. In fact, she is rapidly catching up with more experienced national players like P. Pushppa Devi (82nd) and Zulhijjah Azan (83rd). The soft-spoken Vanessa, a Form Four student of St George's Girls School, is hungry for more glory next year. "Next year will be important because I'll be sitting for my SPM as well. "But I've been balancing my studies and squash for so many years, I'm quite comfortable with the arrangement," said Vanessa, who took up squash at the tender age of six. "It has been a great year for me, having received good ranking points and beaten some top players along the way. " I'm satisfied but there's still a lot which I can do. I'm looking to improve more, maybe try to get into the top 50 next year," added Vanessa. |
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