Nadal: “I’m going to go to Rome, and then I’ll tell you if I’ll go to Paris”
With emotions inside, as he himself admitted during his last press conference at the Madrid Open. Rafa Nadal, who was received and dismissed by the media with applause, praised his farewell to the Spanish capital after his fall to Jiri Lehecka and emphasized how lucky he was with all the love he received. In addition, he explained the map of his route for the near future, which will pass through Rome next week.
He will never play in Spain again: “A spectacular night, they never let me down, the people here made me feel like these years are something that will stay with me forever. I liked it. A month, three weeks ago I didn’t know if I would still play an official match. I managed to say goodbye on the track, and at a decent level. It means a lot to me that I played here. For me, this city, Spain, has always meant support and energy that has decisively helped me in my career, and today I take with me a very wonderful energy, an indelible memory. I will never be able to thank you enough. I don’t know if I’ll be playing in Spain for the last time, I don’t know if there might be another option or not, it’s something I haven’t considered, but it’s very likely that it will be so. If so, it’s a great memory and a great night.”
No tears: “Yes, I was very worried inside, the thing is that I survived. I didn’t want to shed tears because I was not yet done with my journey with the racket in my hand. I graduated in Madrid. It was an extremely exciting night, but perhaps now is not the time to let go of everything I have inside, on an emotional and sensational level. I still have a way to go and I don’t want to give up the adrenaline just yet. I leave this week having taken steps forward and we will have to see if I can build on those gains. I came here with doubts in all respects and I leave here with less doubts. It was an incredibly positive week. Today I played a match in which my opponent played at a very high level, and although I was competitive, I had my small opportunities. He was inspired and congratulations to him for that. My first set was my best set since I competed again. What I appreciate about foot activity, control and ball speed is the day I was in the best position on the court. After that, I actually experienced some decline in muscle mass, which is logical after yesterday’s game. But I’m happy with this week in every way.”
Return to Spain: “The Davis Cup is ahead, which can be excluded with a high percentage, but not 100%. You never know what might happen in the future. During these months, I tried not to confirm what could turn against me. If they turned against me, I would be the first to admit it. When I didn’t tell you how things were going, you may have felt at times that you didn’t know what was going on, because I didn’t know either. It’s hard to talk about things when you don’t know how they will develop and what will happen, and that’s why I haven’t interacted with you much, not out of pleasure, but out of a feeling of nothingness. able to tell something real. What happens in the future will be seen, I am happy and at peace with everything that has happened and with my career. I made an effort to extend my career as long as possible for many reasons: out of a sense of duty and because I still enjoy playing this sport and enjoy playing this sport. Everyone is happy, we’ll see what happens in the coming weeks.”
Roland Garros also dispelled doubts: “I don’t have any guarantees, but what stands behind me is that I played four games in Madrid. Although I was a little more tired today, it was nothing serious, so my body handled it well for a few hours. My tennis is better than when I arrived, this wheel, if I don’t have confidence that the tennis will hold up, it won’t work. If my body holds up, I don’t know what might happen. The sport changes things quickly and I am doing the smartest thing possible and doing everything I can to continue to give myself opportunities in the upcoming tournaments. I’ll tell you about Paris after Rome, I’d like to be sure. “I’m going to explore what can happen in Rome, I’d like to play in Rome.”
The effort pays off: “It always pays off, and even if it doesn’t come, it pays off too. For me it’s worth it because otherwise I’m not at peace with myself. And this is a vital principle for me: I come home feeling that I did everything in my power to make sure everything went well. You lose, you win, and that’s part of our world. But the feeling of trying my hardest to make sure everything goes well is something I’ve been able to take almost to the extreme in my career, and when recovering from injuries I try to do it that way too. I was lucky to have very good people around me in all respects. In difficult moments, I always had the support of all people, as well as the affection of followers.”
As a child, he imagined this situation: “As an 18-year-old young man, I was not ready at the time to imagine a future like the one I had. When you look at things today and look back, it’s a different point of view. But then, in 2005, I was worried about winning the final, and I wasn’t thinking about the afterlife. This ending was the start of many bad things that happened in my career, but it is one of the ones I like the most. The next day I could barely even walk, I broke my navicular bone in the game and didn’t really notice it, it was one of the most serious injuries of my career. For me, my circle in Madrid is closed, I could not imagine that I would play here at my age. It was a race with difficult moments, less than expected, but despite the problems that arose, there is not the slightest complaint about anything. Although my injuries caused me significant suffering, they gave me the opportunity to appreciate the good things that happened to me. There are times when we forget to have fun while we are in the whirlwind of winning and winning.”
People are crying: “It’s a huge personal satisfaction when someone gets excited, and it’s not just because of the sporting aspect. I think I did everything well, and not just with the racket in my hand. We all make mistakes, but I really tried to be respectful, kind, and serve people the best way I could. On the track I tried to behave appropriately, and most of the time I succeeded. It’s normal for people around me to cry, even if I behaved badly, they would cry because they love me. If people who are not so close to me are touched, it is a very great personal satisfaction for me. It has real value, it’s people and people. I hope I set at least a good example for new generations and for the children who have seen me on TV all these years.”
Next: “I will try to play in Rome, this is another special tournament in my career. I won 10, there are also a lot of emotions there. Playing in the tournaments where I was successful, I missed Monte Carlo, but I really like Rome. I will try to play well, I want to be competitive and play good tennis, I will work hard to see what happens. Today is an emotional, unforgettable day as I say goodbye to Madrid, probably the place where I have received the most love over the years, but my career continues and I have my goals. In the next few weeks I want to see if I can get it.”
Follow the Diario AS channel on WhatsApp, where you will find everything about sports in one space: news of the day, agenda with the latest news about the most important sporting events, the most striking images, the opinion of the best AS. companies, reports, videos and a little humor from time to time.