Rafael Nadal admits lack of intensity, confidence led to `shock` Monte Carlo defeat

London, Apr 19 (ANI): World No.1 Rafael Nadal has admitted that it had been harder for him after his Australian Open exit to find again the intensity, confidence and the inside power that he used to have following his Monte Carlo Masters quarter-final defeat.

Nadal's compatriot David Ferrer ended his run of 17-consecutive defeats at the hands of the 13-time Grand Slam champion by taking advantage of Nadal's error-strewn tennis to beat him 7-6, 6-4 on Friday.

According to The Independent, although Nadal's defeat to Djokovic ended his eight-year winning streak at the tournament, the Spaniard had only recently returned to competition following a lengthy absence through injury and the Serb had already beaten him in major clay-court finals.

Nadal, who made 44 unforced errors and was broken four times, traced his problems back to the Australian Open final in January, when he lost to Stanislas Wawrinka after suffering a back injury and said that it was always a bit hard for him to regain his confidence and intensity after his Melbourne form.

However, Nadal insisted that his back is not an issue anymore while Ferrer, who plays Wawrinka in the semi-finals after the Australian Open champion beat Milos Raonic, said that he is pleased with the victory and the way he played as he had to wait ten years to beat Nadal on clay.