Rivals Federer and Nadal set to meet in last eight

Four-times champion Roger Federer was delighted to welcome back to the ATP Tour his long-time rival Rafa Nadal, a man he could face in the quarter-finals of the BNP Paribas Open at Indian Wells. Spaniard Nadal has slipped to fifth in the world rankings after being sidelined for seven months last year due to a left knee injury and is seeded to meet Federer in the last eight of the elite ATP Masters 1000 event in the California desert. “I only just saw him this week after my practice, I was really excited to see him again,” Swiss world number two Federer told reporters at Indian Wells as the men’s tournament began on Thursday. “We haven’t had much contact. I think he really wanted to get away from it all, which I totally understand. “I was really happy to see him doing so well in Acapulco and it’s great to see him here playing on the hard courts.” Left-hander Nadal returned to the ATP circuit last month in South America where he competed in three relatively minor claycourt events, winning two of them after reaching all three finals. He gave himself a huge confidence boost for Indian Wells by overpowering fellow Spaniard David Ferrer 6-0 6-2 in the final of the Mexican Open in...