New world number one Rafael Nadal is undecided about playing at the annual Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships in 2014.

The 2006 champion says he loves playing in the Aviation Club tournament — scheduled for February 24 to March 1 next year — but says his injury-plagued knees would cope better with playing on clay rather than a hardcourt.

“I would never say never — it is difficult to say whether I will be there or not. [Dubai] is a tournament that I really love so much. I was really sorry that this year I couldn’t play there because I should, but during my comeback I needed to play on an easier surface and that’s what I had to change. So I had to go to Acapulco and play on clay instead,” Nadal said on the sidelines of the Shanghai Rolex Masters on Tuesday.

“I doubt the situation has changed a lot since then. Even if I had the great success on hard surfaces, for my knees it is better to play on clay. So I don’t know if I am going to play yet in February [in Dubai] because playing on hard is difficult for me.”