Saturday 29 August 2015 12:06, UK
Rafa Nadal insists he has not considered searching for a new coach and still feels he can compete for major titles over the next two years.
The Spaniard has endured a difficult year which has seen him relinquish his French Open crown and slip down the world rankings.
But the 29-year-old has never questioned his long-term partnership with coach Toni Nadal, his uncle, and believes it is his own responsibility to turn around his fortunes at the upcoming US Open.
"I have (had) an amazing career with the team that I have today, the same team from the beginning," he said.
"So my feeling is if something's not working well it's not because of your team, it's because of myself. The one thing I have to change is myself."
So my feeling is if something's not working well it's not because of your team, it's because of myself.
Nadal's run of five consecutive French Open titles was ended by a quarter-final loss to Novak Djokovic and the current world No 8 then suffered a second-round defeat against Dustin Brown at Wimbledon.
He has freely admitted his confidence has been dented by a number of setbacks over the past few months.
"One of my best things during the whole of my career has been my mental strength," he said. "It is something I was not able to find that consistency during this year, but I start to see that I am again with that mentality, with that self-confidence."
But Nadal believes his persistent injury problems are finally behind him and is confident he can add to his collection of 14 Grand Slam titles.
"I feel great physically, and that's important for me because that's giving me the confidence in my body that's always been very important for the intensity of my movements," he said.
"If I'm healthy and I have the chance to keep working the way I'm working now, I believe that I can keep competing well for the next couple of years and keep having chances in the big events."
His preparations for the US Open have been far from perfect, with Nadal failing to progress past the quarter-finals in two hard-court warm-ups.
He has played down suggestions that he could add a third trophy in New York next month, but believes he is gradually ironing out the problems with his game.
"I will be arrogant if I say I feel ready for the title now after not having a great season," he said. "I don't want to say that. I say I am working hard every day. I know I am playing better and I am feeling better mentally than a few months ago.
"Then I need results. I feel closer than ever during the season to be where I want to be. So let's be patient. Let's keep working with that goal and with that intensity, and I hope that helps and works in a not very long period of time."
Watch live coverage of the US Open on Monday from 4pm on Sky Sports 1.
