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Rafael Nadal insists he has never been good with numbers, but with the sun shining at the Monte-Carlo Country Club a familiar smile has returned to his face.

The Spaniard’s record at the Rolex Monte-Carlo Masters is staggering — 10 titles from 11 finals, a 46-match winning streak from 2005-13 and a 63-4 mark overall. But the tournament’s oldest champion in the Open Era (at 30 years, 10 months in 2017) is clear this week on his primary objective: to complete the tournament.

After more than two weeks on the red dirt, muscle memory in how he moves, plays and constructs points is already well developed and Nadal, with a good report from his doctor, is hoping a hip injury that has hindered his time on court in 2018 will cooperate at the start of the spring European clay swing. “I’m not practising thinking about it,” Nadal told media on Sunday.

Monte-Carlo (AFP): World number one and defending champion Rafael Nadal could face old rival Novak Djokovic in the Monte Carlo Masters quarter-finals next week after Friday's draw.

The top-seeded Spaniard, who claimed his 10th Monte Carlo title last year, has a bye for the first round and will open his tour claycourt season against either Slovenia's Aljaz Bedene or a qualifier.

"I have won the Monte Carlo Masters 10 times, that's a good number. But one more victory, why not?" said Nadal, who played his first matches since January's Australian Open in Spain's Davis Cup quarter-final win over Germany last weekend.