World No.2 Rafael Nadal restored some order when he beat Novak Djokovic 6-3,6-1in Monte Carlo  to end his seven match losing streak against the Serb. The Spaniard now looks forward to defending his Barcelona Open crown this week.
"My challenge is to play well in Barcelona, not to be number one," Nadal told a news conference reminding the media that he was closer to World No.3 Roger Federer than he was to Djokovic.
"It was important to beat Novak, but if I am honest, it was more important to win in Monte Carlo. After my career, all that will remain are the titles, the victories and not who I managed to win them against. My objective is to go day by day. I am starting a special tournament for me because I am playing at home and I hope to do well from the first day and to continue notching wins."
When asked on whether his victory signifies the end of Djokovic's recent dominance of the sport, like perhaps Real Madrid's 2-1 La Liga victory at Barcelona has, Nadal stood up for the Serbian.
"Djokovic hasn't fallen in the first round, he lost in a final and he came to it after winning in Australia and Miami," Nadal, a Real fan, said. "He is having a spectacular year. Barca have been the best team in the world for three years, there is no doubt about that and it will be very difficult for anyone to repeat what they have done. But Madrid have a great team, as they proved on Saturday, and if they go on to win the league and the Champions League, it will be because they were better than Barca. Sport is normally fair like that."
Six-time Barcelona Open champion Nadal will be battling other top-10 players like Andy Murray, David Ferrer and Janko Tipsarevic for the Barcelona Open title.