Spanish tennis player Rafael Nadal is seen on a television screen above the members of the Madrid 2020 bid committee during their presentation to host the 2020 Summer Olympic Games, in Buenos Aires, Sept 7, 2013. [Photo/Agencies]

NEW YORK - Rafa Nadal said it was hard to accept that Spain had failed in a third successive bid to host the Olympics and described the process as "tiring" for the country.

The International Olympic Committee (IOC) eliminated Madrid in the first round of voting and chose Tokyo for the 2020 summer Games on Saturday shortly before Nadal took to the court to defeat France's Richard Gasquet in his US Open semifinal.

"It is hard. It is tiring for all of us, because all the country, all the city of Madrid worked a lot to have that chance, and for so many times already," the Spaniard told reporters.

"So we feel that we deserve it, but there are only two choices (after) today - keep trying or say, 'OK, we take a window, we take a rest for a while, and we will try again in a few years'.

"When I heard that happened it was surprise for me, especially being disqualified in the first round," added Nadal, who will meet Novak Djokovic in the final after the Serb survived a tough five-set match against Stanislas Wawrinka.

"Because I felt that after three attempts, that the people who decides - my feeling was, well, after a lot of years working so much, I don't know if it's 100 perecent fair that we go out at the first qualification."

Olympic singles champion at the 2008 Beijing Games, Nadal will hope to become the first man to win multiple singles gold medals at Rio de Janeiro in 2016.

Nadal extended his record on hardcourts this season to 21-0 with his 6-4 7-6(1) 6-2 win over Gasquet and despite his disappointment for his country, will head into the final against the world number one with confidence.

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