DOHA, Qatar (AP) — Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal are eyeing a confidence-boosting victory at the season-opening Qatar Open – but much of the talk Monday was swirling around Novak Djokovic who is not here but is already showing signs of the dominance that made him such a force in 2011.

The No. 1-ranked Djokovic wrapped up his first title in Abu Dhabi on Saturday and afterward stated that he was feeling better than he did at this time last season. That does not bode well for the second-ranked Nadal and third-ranked Federer who were often on the losing end as the 24-year-old Serb won three Grand Slams on his way to amassing a record of 70 wins and six losses.

Nadal, who lost to Djokovic in the US Open and Wimbledon finals in 2011, said players expect the Serb to dominate again this season.

“Everybody thinks that Djokovic will be difficult to beat, no?” Nadal said. “Not just myself.”

The 25-year-old Spaniard, who is the tournament's top seed, has a first-round match Tuesday against Philipp Kohlschreiber while Federer faces a tricky encounter against Nikolay Davydenko of Russia whom he beat in the final last year. Jo-Wilfried Tsonga of France plays Malek Jaziri of Tunisia while Gael Monfils faces Rui Machado of Portugal.

Nadal suggested he had come to terms with the prospect of being a distant second to Djokovic – at least in the near term.

“You know in the sport ... you cannot be every time in the top,” Nadal said. “I think I played fantastic for seven, eight months in the 2011 season.

“I lost against Djokovic in all the finals, but I almost only lost against him. So that's a really positive thing, play almost every final in all the difficult and important tournaments.”

Looking ahead, Nadal wouldn't say whether he can reverse the trend that saw him fall to Djokovic in six finals in 2011. He has recently said that he felt his tennis in 2011 was sometimes too predicable and has started using a heavier racket to increase his power.

But he also has had his preparations for this season curtailed by a left shoulder injury that he says has healed.

“The only thing I know is I have to practice to improve my tennis. For the rest of my career, I don't know if that's gonna be enough to beat him (Djokovic) or to lose to him 100 more times,” Nadal said.