While most of the ATP World Tour's heavy hitters played in Europe and the Middle East this month, Rafael Nadal is licking his considerable wounds on the comfort of clay in South America.
There was a marvelous shot of Nadal, countryman David Ferrer and the irrepressible Gustavo Kuerten cavorting earlier this week at Rio Carnival. The two Spaniards attempted to sing "Samba Enredo -- Veias do Brasil," and even samba as they rolled down the Sambodromo.
"I think one of the things I always say during my career is that I have been since 16 years old traveling and doing what I have to do," Nadal said. "But at the same time I never lost the opportunity to enjoy life."
It wasn't a coincidence that the toughest opponent in the field at the Rio Open, based strictly on ranking, was Ferrer, whom Nadal considers a good friend.
Last year -- aside from his traditional win at Roland Garros, his record ninth in 10 tries -- was a relative disaster for Nadal. He skipped the US Open (his fourth missed major in seven years) and played only seven matches after Wimbledon. The laundry list of maladies was long: wrist, back, knees, and a bout with a cranky appendix.
Before the Australian Open he claimed he wasn't among the favorites; as usual, he was right. Thanks to Tomas Berdych, he departed in the quarterfinals, winning only eight games in three dispirited sets.
Two years ago, after he missed the only back-to-back Grand Slams of his mature career with fragile knees, Nadal returned to the dirt, the surface he knows and loves best and most. He reached the final in Vina del Mar, Chile, losing to No. 73-ranked Horacio Zeballos, then won titles in Sao Paulo (beating No. 93 David Nalbandian in the final) and Acapulco, Mexico, defeating Ferrer in that championship final.
Nadal won 12 of 13 matches that month and it set him up for a terrific run. He won on the hard courts at Indian Wells, reached the final at Monte Carlo, then took titles in Barcelona, Madrid, Rome and Paris. The take was seven titles and a robust record of 44-2 -- all in four months -- after grave concerns were raised about his future.
Clearly, clay is Nadal's best choice for therapy, both mental and physical:
• Last year he won in Rio, Madrid and Roland Garros and compiled a 25-3 record on the dirt.
• Heading into Rio this week, Nadal had crafted the best clay-court record of the Open era at 318-24 (.930).
• Since 2005, he's 291-14 (.954).
"I'm feeling well physically," Nadal said before the tournament. "I don't know if I'm ready to win here. I'm going to try to be ready for Tuesday to be competitive, to have good chances, and after that we'll see what's going on."
What went on in the early going was vintage Nadal. He hung a 6-4, 6-1 loss on Thomaz Bellucci in his first match. Two days later, he handled fellow Spaniard Pablo Carreno Busta 7-5, 6-3 in a match that ran longer than two hours. Nadal won only five more points than Busta, but he won the important points. He was to play Pablo Cuevas in the quarterfinals on Friday.
Going forward, he will be engaged in an intriguing quest. Can he catch Roger Federer's total of 17 Grand Slam singles titles? Nadal is at 14, tying him with Pete Sampras for the second-best all-time total.
The consensus is he will be a threat for the French Open title as long as he cares to compete at a top level. But realistically, can he win two or three more? Four? The effort required to win seven matches at Roland Garros recently has left him depleted and disheveled for the quick turnaround at Wimbledon.
His exits there the past three years: second round, first round, fourth round. The US Open, where he once reached three finals in three appearances (winning two), will be difficult for him because of its physical demands. His best chance outside Paris seems to be the Australian Open, but that means coming out of the previous season healthy.
Some perspective: Nadal turns 29 on June 3, four days before the French Open final. Since turning 29, Federer is 1-for-18 in majors, winning only Wimbledon in 2012.
This is the third occasion Nadal has come back from a missed major. The first time, after reaching the semifinals at the US Open and the quarters of the 2010 Australian Open, he won the last three majors of the season -- the only time he achieved the rare triple.
The second occasion, he won two of the next three majors. History says he'll eventually rebound with gusto, but when will advancing age and his increasingly fragile body start working against that magnificent record?
That's the precarious edge of the sword upon which Nadal balances.
Nobody knew what Venus Williams' future held in 2011 after it was learned she suffers from Sjogren's syndrome, a debilitating auto-immune condition that drastically altered her diet and ability to practice properly.
Least of all Williams herself.
In her fifth season since the diagnosis, Williams seems to have found a routine, and with it a still-lofty place among WTA players. For someone who turns 35 in June and is in her 19th full season as a professional, this is remarkable.
After reaching the quarterfinals at the Australian Open (losing to fellow American Madison Keys), Williams' ranking -- which once fell as low as No. 103 -- rose to No. 11. She was tantalizingly close to her first top-10 ranking in four years when she stepped on the court for the Dubai Tennis Championships.
The three-time champion dispatched Belinda Bencic in her first match, but fell to Lucie Safarova in her second. With 470 points coming off from last year's title run in Dubai, Williams will have to make another push to crack the top 10.
She is 12-2 and won the Auckland title to open the season, beating No. 8 Caroline Wozniacki in the final.
HOT
Serena Williams 8-0 (1.000)
Stan Wawrinka 15-1 (.938)
Maria Sharapova 12-1 (.923)
David Ferrer 10-1 (.909)
Novak Djokovic 9-1 (.900)
Roger Federer 8-1 (.889)
Venus Williams 12-2 (.857)
Simona Halep 12-2 (.857)
NOT
Ernests Gulbis 0-4 (.000)
Jelena Jankovic 1-3 (.250)
Tommy Robredo 1-3 (.250)
Flavia Pennetta 3-3 (.500)
Lucie Safarova 4-4 (.500)
Alize Cornet 5-5 (.500)
Apparently, 2014 was not a fluke for Stan Wawrinka.
He began the season with a title in Chennai, then had another nice run in Melbourne, beating Kei Nishikori in the quarterfinals before losing a five-setter to eventual champion Novak Djokovic in the semifinals. Now, Wawrinka has collected his first ATP World Tour 500 tournament trophy.
In Rotterdam, he took down two fellow top-10 players, Milos Raonic and Tomas Berdych, on his way to the first indoor title of his career. He's already 15-1 (an ATP high) and into the semifinals in Marseille.
He'll be hoping to add to last year's precedents, a first major (Australia) and Masters (Monte Carlo).
The crowd at the Antwerps Sportpaleis was anticipating the Diamond Games final Feb. 15 between Andrea Petkovic and Carla Suarez Navarro when it was announced the Spaniard was pulling out with . . . a pain in the neck.
What luck that the tournament director was Kim Clijsters, a four-time Grand Slam champion and the 2004 winner of the event in Antwerp, Belgium. When she received the news, Clijsters' first thought was an expletive, but she knew what she had to do.
It was only an exhibition match, but Clijsters looked sharp in beating Petkovic 5-3. Her serve was still impressive, even if her lateral movement was a bit challenged. She even threw in her trademark split.
"I hope you don't take any offense, Kim," Petkovic said afterward, "but I'm glad you are done playing on tour."
Clijsters, a 31-year-old mother of two, retired twice, in 2007 and 2012. She is still younger than world No. 1 Serena Williams, who is 33. Given the current WTA landscape, Clijsters probably still could do some damage.
Nonetheless, it was an impressive effort from Petkovic, who returned to the top 10 for the first time since April 2012. Back, ankle and knee injuries dropped her ranking as low as No. 192, but Petkovic fought back. In fact, she saved eight match points against Belgian wild card Alison Van Uytvanck in her first match and prevailed in 3 hours, 19 minutes -- the WTA's longest match this year.
The trophy is a gold racket and ball, trimmed with 2,008 diamonds. But there is a catch. Petkovic has to win the tournament twice in three years to keep the trophy, valued at $1.5 million.
"I will definitely have to come back," she said, "and try and win the trophy for good."