Nadal says he may pull out of hard-court Masters at Indian Wells to spare his fragile knees

Rafael Nadal says he may pull out of next week's tournament at Indian Wells, Calif., to spare his fragile knees from the hard courts.

Nadal says he "loves" the tournament he won in 2007 and 2009 but has to think about protecting his knees
and staying healthy for the European clay-court season, which ends at the French Open.
He didn't say whether he would play at Key Biscayne, Fla., where he's reached the final three times, after the Indian Wells tournament.

Nadal beat Diego Schwartzman of Argentina 6-2, 6-2 Tuesday at the Mexican Open. In his comeback this month after more than seven months out with knee trouble, he reached the final in Chile and won in Brazil.