It has been a sensational season of tennis. Novak Djokovic won a record third consecutive Australian Open title; Rafael Nadal produdce a staggering comeback from injury by winning a record eighth French Open title and also the year’s last Grand Slam, the US Open at Flushing Meadows. In between, there was Andy Murray, who ended 76 years of British hurt at Wimbledon by winning the men’s title.

All eyes now are on the season-ending ATP World Tours Finals in London, where the best eight players of the world are competing for the year-end glory. And that’s one title Nadal would be looking for more than anybody else, because, surprisingly, the year-end trophy is one silverware that’s still missing from the Spaniard’s glittering cabinet.

There’s, of course, a reason behind Nadal’s flop show at the season finale. The event has been staged indoors on hard courts for the last nine years – first in Shanghai and then at London’s O2 Arena since 2009. The Spaniard believes it is unfair to players who don’t thrive indoors. He has suggested playing the tournament outdoors on a different surface each year, giving clay, grass and hard court specialists at least one good chance to win every few years.

“It is not only fatigue. One of the small reasons was fatigue, one of the main reasons was I have never been a fantastic player on the indoor surface. The Tour Finals have been indoors from 2005 until now. It will be more fair to have it outdoors on different surfaces. We qualify for this tournament by playing on all surfaces, but the Tour Finals are always on hard courts,” Nadal explains, when asked why he has never prospered in the year-end event.

Nadal reaching the final of the season finale just once — in 2010 when he was defeated by six-time champion Roger Federer, whose game is far more suited to the quicker indoor conditions.

Given that the Tour Finals has been staged on either hard courts or carpet for all but one of its 43 editions, Nadal realises his wish may never be granted, with the O2 Arena in London contracted to host the event until at least 2015.

“I know it won’t happen in my generation. It’s not for me. I say it for the next generation and because it would be interesting for the fans,” he says. “I have never been to a tournament with a better atmosphere, but that doesn’t mean the ATP can’t be a little bit more fair with the players.”

It’s another thing that the ATP has never been known to be very sensitive to players’ wishes. The grueling international schedule has often drawn sharp criticisms from the top players, but the game’s ruling body is yet to make a sensitive stand on that.