Rafael Nadal On Fire But Humble

Written by: Staff on 20th May 2013

Rafael Nadal On Fire But Humble

epa03707724 Spanish tennis player Rafael Nadal poses with the trophy after beating Swiss player Roger Federer in their final match of the Italian Open tennis tournament at Foro Italico in Rome, Italy, 19 May 2013. Nadal won 6-1 and 6-3. EPA/CLAUDIO ONORATI |

After winning his sixth title in past three and half months when he overwhelmed Roger Federer in the final of Rome, Rafael Nadal will go to Paris with a head of steam as he seeks his record eighth crown. But while the humble Spaniard realizes that his level is very high, he is not taking another title run for granted.

“If I play like this and I arrive to Roland Garros and somebody beats me I shake his hand,” Nadal said. “I am happy and I am playing much better than some months ago and I am doing the right things to play well. Roland Garros is only one tournament and when you play one tournament you can lose and when you play and win many titles in a row like I am doing, then you are doing things well. But I can reach Roland Garros and lose in the first round; that’s sport and that’s tennis.”

Nadal has changed his practice routine to emphasize quality of over quantity, which is necessary given that he is dealing with chronically bad knees. But he says that he is in a great mental space, which can compensate for the lack of time doing drills. Plus he is almost 27 and it wasn’t as if even after seven months off that he forgot how to play. But given how fragile he looked in his first tournament back at Vina del Mar, that he has only lost two matches; to Horacaio Zeballos in Chile and to Novak Djokovic in the final of Monte Carlo. His success has been amazing.

“If you told me that four or five months ago I would say you are crazy,” he said. “After eight tournaments and six victories and two finals, this is a dream for me and I am enjoying a wonderful dream.”

Nadal added that part of the key to his success is that he never takes any opponent lightly. That is why prior to every match he plays, regardless of whom will be across the net, he says that he has a “difficult” test coming.

“Every day is a different day and when I go on court I know I can win or lose,” he said. “All the players who play here have the potential to beat everybody so when I go on court I always am thinking that what has happened for me in the past eight or nine years is not forever. Nobody stays here forever and nobody wins forever and so I don’t know when this will finish. So I try to take care in very moment. I respect everyone and this is why I have a lot of success every year. Some days I don t play my best and I have to fight and run and be humble and this is why I win.”

©Daily Tennis News Wire

Topics: clay court tennis, Rafael Nadal, Roger Federer, Roland Garros, Rome Masters, Spanish tennis news, Swiss tennis news