Will die to compete again, says Rafael Nadal

London: Former World No. 1 Rafael Nadal told The Times on Saturday he is so determined to add to his 14 Grand Slam titles he is prepared to die to do so.

The 30-year-old won two titles this year but he was plagued by physical problems which robbed him of the chance of winning a 10th French Open. Last month he announced he would be bringing down the curtain on his season prematurely to focus on being full fit for next year. "I'm going to die to be ready again to compete for everything," he told

The Times at his new academy in his hometown of Manacor on the island of Majorca.

"I'm going to work more than ever to try to make that happen and I have big determination to put me in a position to fight again for important things."

Nadal, who won Olympic doubles bronze but lost out in the third place singles match to Kei Nishikori after a marathon semi-final with Juan Martin del Potro, said the left wrist injury he suffered during the French Open had come at a most inopportune moment. "It has been a tough year for me because I got injured at the worst possible time when I was playing great and was having a lot of fun on the court," he said.