MONACO: Rafael Nadal admitted yesterday that his incredible 42-match, 10-year unbeaten run at Monte Carlo will end, but he is in no hurry to see that day.

The 26-year-old Spaniard, who last lost on the clay of Monte Carlo as a fresh-faced 16-year-old when then-clay court king Guillermo Coria defeated him in straight sets in the third round, also claimed he is not the clear favorite he has been in the past.

Nadal is bidding for an unprecedented ninth straight title at the Masters event in the heart of the Cote d’Azur but says his recent seven-month injury lay-off means he cannot be treated as the all-conquering clay king of old.

“I cannot say I’m the biggest favorite to win here again,” the Spaniard said yesterday as he prepared for his second-round start after a bye.

“This is not an easy event to win. I don’t want to lose perspective, but I don’t want to lose either.

“Everything in life finishes sometime. Someday the winning will stop, not everything is forever.

“But I’m excited to be here, it is always a high motivation for me to play Monte Carlo.” On court Nadal’s journeyman compatriot Roberto Bautista Agut pulled off an upset as he defeated French 11th seed Gilles Simon 6-3, 7-6 (8-6). Another seed Marin Cilic avoided a similar fate but only just as the ninth-seeded Croat battled back from a set down to beat Horacio Zeballos 6-2, 6-7 (6/8), 6-2.

Finn Jarkko Nieminen defeated slumping Serb Viktor Troicki 6-1, 6-2 while Russian veteran Nikolay Davydenko dispatched German qualifier Daniel Brands 6-3, 6-4.

World No.1 Novak Djokovic was testing his injured ankle for another day after vowing to try and regain fitness in time for a Wednesday start at the event, which begins the European clay season.

Djokovic hurt the ankle last weekend in a Davis Cup win but has made faster progress than he might have deemed possible and holds out hopes of taking his spot in the draw.