Ferrer Gets a Boost After a Setback Against Nadal David Ferrer didn't fare well against Rafael Nadal on Sunday but he did move up in the world rankings. PARIS - It is one of the quirks of tennis that David Ferrer will wake up Monday morning ahead of Rafael Nadal by at least one measure. Just not the one that matters most. Perhaps someday the rankings will provide Ferrer solace for what happened in the men's final at the French Open. That he is the fourth-ranked man in the world, one spot ahead of his countryman Nadal, is a testament to Ferrer's consistency - he has won 37 matches this year - and to his better finish here this year than last, when he lost to Nadal in the semifinal. But it is his 10th loss of 2013 that may well define Ferrer's career. That was the one that came Sunday after a sensational French Open run - Ferrer did not drop a set - but provided a quiet exit from his first Grand Slam final, 6-3, 6-2, 6-3. It's strange, no? Ferrer said. I lost the final against Rafael but tomorrow I'll be No. Anyway, I would change. I prefer to win here and to stay No. No man in the Open era of tennis has waited as long as Ferrer, 31, before reaching the final of a Grand Slam - he has played in 42 Grand Slam events. Ferrer said he was nervous, although maybe not as nervous as he had been during Davis Cup matches. His wait for his first title goes on, he is second on the list, behind Goran Ivanisevic, who waited 48 Grand Slams before finally winning one. Ferrer is already in first place with Andres Gomez for playing the most French Opens before reaching the final - this was Ferrer's 11th appearance in Paris. It was, in any sense, his most successful, even Sunday. Ferrer played well, with a game plan to be aggressive and go to the net. Early on, before it began to rain steadily, Ferrer was doing that. He had break point chances, including at 3-3 in the third set, which Ferrer considered close. But Ferrer could not convert, and his last threat was gone. "For win points against Rafael, I need to play close the balls, and in important moments I have more pressure and it's difficult to beat him," Ferrer said. Rafael, in important moments he's the best. He played very good points always. But Ferrer also pointed to Nadal's better serve (he had five aces and got 70 percent of his first serves in), his better play at the nets and to his greater consistency. Ferrer also noted that the wet conditions, which slowed the court, were a disadvantage against Nadal because Nadal is stronger and with the pace of play slow, Nadal was able to overpower Ferrer with winners. Ferrer is known as the terrier of tennis because of his fight and work ethic. But because of his lack of success at the biggest events, he is considered outside the circle of the big four - Nadal, Roger Federer, Novak Djokovic and Andy Murray - who dominate the game, even if he will, literally, be among the big four in the rankings. The women's runner-up Maria Sharapova even inadvertently disparaged him when she noted Saturday that Serena Williams serves as hard as Ferrer does. Ferrer laughed that off Sunday - no, he said, he does not think Williams is a better server than he is. The lack of recognition for his game does not trouble him. I am O.K., no? I have a good praise in Spain, outside of Spain. I don't care if I am more famous or not. I am happy with myself. I am very happy with my career. I will try to be more years of the best players of the world. He is there for now. Ferrer owes his consistency to his lack of serious injury and he said to always enjoying what he is doing in the moment. Even after his loss, Ferrer said he was calm, seemingly at peace with what had seemed, to nearly everyone, an inevitable result. Ferrer said that after two days of rest he will start to prepare on grass for Wimbledon, for his next chance to finally win a Grand Slam event. Tennis is littered with players who have appeared in Grand Slams, even in finals, only to disappear without ever reaching that level again. If he is to avoid that fate, Ferrer must figure out a way to break through the big four, in the place it matters most - in the final of a Grand Slam. "I suppose in the future I'll have to try and improve," he said. That's why I work day in and day out. I hope that I'll play another Grand Slam final. Last year for the first time I won a Masters 1000, and I've made progress. Now I've reached finals of a Grand Slam. I hope I will continue.