NEW YORK — Former world number one Rafa Nadal is feeling confident about his chances of competing for a third U.S. Open title when the tournament starts in New York next week.
"I hope to be ready for it. I have been playing well the last couple of weeks. I think I'm in better shape than a few months ago then arrived the competition and everything that happened," the 29-year old Spaniard told Reuters.
"But I'm confident that I can play well."
Nadal, who won the U.S. Open in 2010 and 2013 but missed last year's tournament due to illness and injury, was ousted from Wimbledon in a shock second round exit but has claimed three titles in 2015 -- Hamburg, Stuttgart and Buenos Aires.