Rafael Nadal is hopeful he can turn his season around after making a poor start to the 2015 campaign.

The 28-year-old usually comes into his own during the clay court season, but so far this year he has struggled to find any sort of form and consistency.

The nine-times French Open champion has only one solitary ATP Tour title to his name this year, which is his worst showing at this stage of the season since he was first successful at Roland Garros in 2005.

That victory came in the low key Argentina Open in Buenos Aires at the end of February, where the highest-ranked player the Spaniard had to face was world number 59 Federico Delbonis.

Since that success in South America, the 14-times Grand Slam winner has struggled to make an impact on the tour, with the Spaniard believing that the injuries he suffered during the 2014 campaign are having a negative affect on both his current form and confidence.

He said: “This is part of sport. Other times I have been able to maintain a high ranking because I have returned quickly but this has not been the case now.”

The world number four is next in action in the Madrid Masters this week, an event he has won on four previous occasions and the left-hander will be hoping he can use the tournament to kick-start his preparations for the French Open that begins on May 24.

Nadal is aiming for an unprecedented tenth title in the French capital and he believes that his performance in that tournament will outline just how much his form has dropped in recent times.

He continued: “We will see how far I have fallen after Roland Garros.”