Rafael Nadal did a lengthy interview with CNN’s Talk Asia while playing at the Shanghai Masters last month.
“I’m not a machine,” Nadal revealed, “and like everybody I have better moments than others.”
The second part features some great talk about the Fedal rivalry, Uncle Toni and the Mallorcan way of life:
The final section includes Rafa’s thoughts on his career: past, present and future. Shocker – Rafa calls himself “one of the best in tennis!” What a conceited jerk.
Rafa takes the court again at the Paris Masters this coming week.
Thanks to GTT reader, LongLiveKingRog, for sending this link along! Click here for the CNN page.
Tags: ATP, CNN talk Asia, Federer, Nadal, shanghai, tennis
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What. A . SWEETHEART!
It’s late over here and I have to sleep, so I’ll write my thoughts on this interview later.
But just a quick note. When I read “What a conceited jerk.” Then scrolled down to see that sweet face with the sparkly eyes and angelic smile and adorable dimples and gorgeous sun-kissed curles, I thought “NEVER!”
Those words just don’t work with Rafa! Even while joking! He’s such a sweetie pie! What a face! <3333
Haha! At least you get that I’m joking. I’m waiting for an angry email from someone – “how dare you!!!!!”
God, he is the sweetest guy ever! Those dimples are crazy, I love them
and I love him. Rafito is the dream of every women…oh, yes, he is!
Can anyone be more sweet? I watch tennis only for him. Rafa and his smile drive me crazy.
Rafa is very engaging, very guileless. I like his directness and honesty. As a Fed fan, I like his open appreciation of Roger’s game. (I wish I could like Rafa’s game as much, but I don’t.)
What struck me most from the interview was what he said about Uncle Tony, who sounds like a classic “tennis dad.” It reminded me of Agassi’s discussion of his father on 60 Minutes last night. I don’t think Uncle Tony drove Rafa as ruthlessly as Agassi’s father drove him, and Rafa still has a lot of affection for UT, but the pattern is there. Players who are driven like that don’t seem to last as long as the ones who love the game for itself (like Federer and Santoro, for example). I don’t see Rafa hanging around if he is no longer near the top of the tennis heap. He says as much. Of course, I’m not sure Roger will hang around if he slides down the rankings either, but it’s more likely in my view.
Anyway, very interesting interview. Thanks for posting it.
Yeah, I though that was interesting too. I never thought of Rafa and UT as having any strife – its usually portrayed as this idyllic relationship.
I don’t get the vibe from Uncle Toni that he wants Rafa to be the top tennis player at any cost – I think with UT, his philosophy is “if you’re going to try, you have to try as hard as you possibly can.” At least from what I’ve read, it sounds like he’s a perfectionist, but not the kind of person who would drive someone into the ground for his own ambition.
What do you make of Rafa calling tennis his hobby? Is he using that word in the real sense? Because a guy like Agassi would never call tennis a hobby – he’d call it a job. (And of course, Agassi stuck around for a very long time.)
Good points. Maybe UT is more a perfectionist than a slave driver. As for the “hobby” comment, I’d guess it comes from Rafa’s English being a little rough. I’m sure he thinks of tennis as more interesting than a “job” (in the Agassi sense), but also more significant than a “hobby.” I think he likes what he’s doing a lot more than Agassi did — likes competing, likes improving, likes being exceptionally good — but I don’t sense that he loves the game the way some players do. When he hits 30, Rafa will be on his fishing boat, not a tennis court.
gee he’s sweet!! =)
You ask why would Nadal call tennis a hobby versus a job, as Agassi might. You know, Nadal has said in another interview that he has always been more interested in the competition part of tennis than the tennis itself. And that jives well with his comments in this interview when he says that he can’t see himself playing when he’s no longer winning major tournaments. Nadal is a homebody…he loves his home and his life at home. He’s apparently grounded in other things as well as he is in tennis. I don’t get that sense from Agassi, though I really want to read his book to know more. Based upon what Agassi’s reported thus far about his relationship with his father, I can’t imgine he ever felt all that comfortable at home. Tennis WAS his life, or so it sounds that way! It doesn’t sound that way with Nadal. These things, I believe, have impact.