Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer have vowed to add another Grand Slam title in their records, when both players return to the tennis scene next year.
Federer revealed in an interview with Canchallena La Nacion about his plans of coming back better than what people would expect of him. The Swiss Maestro, who decided to skip the remainder of the season to recuperate from a knee injury suffered at Wimbledon, said he aims to keep winning Grand Slam tournaments and get back the top of the ATP world rankings.
"The goal is to be as stronger as ever in December before coming back better than what people expect," the 17-time Grand Slam winner said via Tennis World USA.
"My dream is to keep winning Grand Slam events and comeback at the top of the rankings, but when they ask me if I will play in 2018, I reply that I hope it's the case, but first of all I have to play five tournaments in a row and without physical issues, because the most important thing is to be in good shape for more than one tournament."
Nadal also share the same resolve of winning another major next season. Nadal, who followed on Federer decision to sit out the rest of his 2016 campaign to recover from a left wrist injury, insisted he has "big determination" to win major tournaments again, although the 14-time Grand Slam winner admitted it would be tough at this point of his career to realize such goal.
"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 told The Times.
"It's tough now, but it was also tough when I was 20 when I had knee issues. For me, it takes a lot of effort to come from 2015, when I had a tough year and it was hard work, to get back where I was before the injury this year."
It has been awhile since both Federer and Nadal were victorious at a major event. Federer last won a Grand Slam was back in 2012 at Wimbledon, while Nadal's most recent was at the 2014 French Open.
Considering Federer and Nadal's history of injuries, it is hard to imagine two of the greatest tennis players in the Open Era win against the likes of Novak Djokovic and Andy Murray, who both are in the prime of their careers. But as long as Federer and Nadal like their respective chances, it is a possibility fans should anticipate next year.
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