"I am No. 8 in the world, not No. 100, I'm not so bad" - When Rafael Nadal hit out at reporters for incessant questions on poor season at US Open 2015

Rafael Nadal once hit out at reporters at the US Open after being subjected to incessant questions about his relatively poor 2015 season.

After injury setbacks forced him to cut his 2014 season short, Nadal faced an unfortunate start to 2015. Following a shock defeat in his tournament opener at the Qatar Open, he suffered a loss in the quarterfinals of the Australian Open. Subsequently, his campaigns at the Indian Wells Masters and Miami Masters also ended in early exits.

In a surprising turn of events, the Spaniard's struggles persisted during the claycourt season as well. Although he won his first title of the season at the Argentina Open, he failed to clinch any titles in Monte-Carlo, Barcelona, Madrid, or Rome.

Unexpectedly, he was defeated by Novak Djokovic in the quarterfinals of the French Open, causing him to slip down to World No. 10, his lowest ranking since April 2005.

Nadal showed promise during the grass season, winning his second title of the year at the Stuttgart Open. However, he suffered a shock defeat to Dustin Brown in the second round of the Wimbledon Championships. Despite rebounding with a victory at the German Open, he failed to make a mark at the Masters 1000 events in Canada and Cincinnati.

Rafael Nadal entered the 2015 US Open as the eighth seed, kicking off his campaign with a 6-3, 6-2, 4-6, 6-4 win over Borna Coric. He then defeated Diego Schwartzman 7-6(5), 6-3, 7-5 to reach the third round of the New York Major.

Despite the win, Nadal was less than pleased during his post-match press conference. He took issue with a question about his fans being worried about him and hoping for a strong comeback.

In response, the Spaniard emphasized that he was the World No. 8, asserting that the repeated questions about his form made him feel as though he was the World No. 200. He candidly disclosed that his interactions with the reporters led him to believe he was a "bad" player even after he won his matches.

"I am No. 8 in the world. I am not No. 100," he said in his post-match press conference. "It seems like I am No. 200 in every press conference. I am not so bad. After I arrive here with the victory, I go back to the locker room saying how bad I am. Every day."

However, he also acknowledged the fans' worries as normal, admitting that he shared their concerns about his performance.

"For the fans, it is normal that they are worried because I am worried, too. If I am not playing well, I am the first one who worries," he said.

Rafael Nadal: "It seems like I come here and if I am telling the truth, it is bad"

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Rafael Nadal continued to lay out his frustrations with attending press conferences, asserting that his openness about his nerves and anxiety was not well received.

"It seems like I come here and if I am telling the truth, it is bad. If I explain if I am playing with nerves or with anxiety, like I did in Miami, and I say that after in the press conference, then I don’t know what you want of me," he said during the press conference.

Nadal's woes continued at the 2015 US Open. Following his win over Diego Schwartzman, the Spaniard locked horns with Fabio Fognini in the third round. Despite winning the first two sets, Nadal was unable to close out the win, allowing Fognini to pull off a stunning upset, defeating the eighth seed 3-6, 4-6, 6-4, 6-3, 6-4.

The shocking loss brought an end to the Spaniard's record 10-year run of winning at least one Grand Slam title.