Rafael Nadal insists he is fit for clay court season

'Clay King' Rafael Nadal has insisted that he is free of physical problems as his clay court season is set to start next week in the Rio de Janeiro Open.

The Spaniard, who is coming off illness and injuries, is the world's best when its come to clay. He has won nine of the last 10 French Opens, Sport24 reported.

However, Nadal hasn't played since losing in the quarterfinals of the Australian Open, and the Rio heat would reportedly be stifling. He also plans to march Sunday in an annual Carnival parade.

It was reportedly 38 degrees Celsius on Friday with the same temperatures predicted for next week.

The former world number one called the conditions extreme with high humidity on top of that.