Rafael Nadal shuts down talks of 'pressure' of chasing Carlos Alcaraz for year-end top ranking spot

Rafael Nal is a different man. He's losing sleep over his newborn baby and t so much . 1 ranking.

Even with all of his absences, Nal has a shot at finishing season as world . 1. He has racked up 5,820 points, trailing only top-ranked Carlos Alcaraz, who has 6,650. But Nal me clear on Tuesday what his priorities were when he was peppered with questions about fighting for year-end . 1 spot.

re will be fight.

Nal has achieved coveted year-end . 1 ranking five times, tied with Roger Federer, and trailing only vak Djokovic (7) and Pete Sampras (6).

I don't fight to be . 1, Nal said at a Paris Masters news conference.

Something that I said since long time ago: I will t fight anymore to be . 1. I did in past. I achieved that goal a couple of times in my career that I have been very, very happy and proud about. But I am in a moment of my tennis career that I don't fight to be . 1.

For w, he wants to be a . 1 d.

He's come to Paris for his first tournament since his wife Maria Francisca Perello gave birth to ir first child  a boy  in early October. Nal mitted he's approaching things differently w that he's a far.

"It's quite interesting how, even after (kwing him only) two or three weeks, leave your son at home and t be able to see him . . . you start missing him, Nal said. 

"We are lucky today that, with techlogy, everything, we can do video calls any time that you want.

Nal received a first-round bye and will face Tommy Paul or Roberto Bautista Agut in second round on Wednesday. He hasn't played competitively since September when he partnered with Federer in doubles at Laver Cup to celebrate last match of retiring Swiss great.

Nal won Australian Open and French Open this year to achieve a record 22 Grand Slam singles titles, one more than Djokovic and two more than Federer. But vibe on tour is a changing of guard, with 36-year-old Nal passing baton to 19-year-old Alcaraz, at least in ir Spain homeland.

Nal has struggled with injuries and played only 10 tournaments. He suffered a stress fracture in his ribs at Indian Wells in March. n an abdominal injury forced him to pull out of Wimbledon semifinals and affected him whole summer. 

It's obvious that when I was . 1 for first time in my career in 2008, I really wanted to be re, Nal said, because I felt that 2005, '06, '07, including '08, I was doing amazing results, winning a lot of tournaments, having a lot of points on ranking system.

Today is a different story for me. I don't kw how many events I played, like 10, and I finished eight. Difficult to be . 1 like this. But happy to be in that position that says when I was playing, I was playing well.

Alcaraz became youngest men's . 1 in 50-year history of ATP rankings in September when he won his first major crown at U.S. Open.

It was my dream to win a Grand Slam, to become . 1 of world, but I didn't expect to do that at 19 years old, Alcaraz said. Everything came so fast, faster than I could imagine.

Alcaraz is set to clinch year-end . 1 for first time. He could be first player to achieve that outside Big Four of Nal, Djokovic, Federer and Andy Murray since Andy Roddick in 2003.

. 3 Stefas Tsitsipas and . 4 Casper Ruud have an outside chance at . 1 as 1,000 points go to Paris Masters winner and 1,500 points for a perfect run at ATP Finals in Turin this month.