Nadal News 2.0

.....cont

Personally, I think it's one thing to train and it's another thing to compete. I speak for my sport, for tennis. Training shouldn't be a problem, because if I'm going to train with another professional I don't see the problem. The reality today is that it is not a priority at the moment, neither for me nor for anyone. The priority is to tackle the health crisis we have before anything else, but I understand that training itself would be no problem.

I find it very difficult in our sport. I wish we could do it even if it was without an audience, but I think it's a time to be responsible and coherent. So, I don't see how we can travel every week to a different country. Because in the end, even if we played without an audience, our sport is different. To play a Grand Slam we would be talking about that there are 128 male players, 128 women's players, plus all their teams, plus the doublolists. Even though there are no audiences we are talking about that, in a compound that is large but, in the end we are very in touch, we will be all these people plus the services that are needed. Although there are not many services necessary to be able to develop our activity.

I think it is important to differentiate sports, in the same way that in deconfining you have to go through communities, by region... I think in sport too. Contact sports, as a team, are much more dangerous than individual sports. It would also be an important exercise to take into account the people who make the decisions.

But I'm also telling you that, at the level of competing, our sport is the most complicated. We're moving every week and we have to move a lot of people. We have to be in contact with hotels, with society in general to be able to reach our places.

I'm delighted to play without an audience. It's not something I like, but it's all there is. But I, unfortunately, see that in our sport our usual activity, I don't think, because of the prospects I see even though they are improving that it is prudent to play again in a short space of time."

- How do you think this situation will affect you professionally in the future?

Rafa Nadal: "I don't like to think in the very long run because you don't know how they happen. To be able to re-develop a completely normal activity we will have to find a vaccine or something that definitively cures the virus, which to this day we are not yet prepared for it. And then, both Pau and I have an advanced age so all the stopovers in time I think hurt us, especially. And it hurts us not to compete, but not to train as well. For a body like mine, which is punished, I haven't touched a racket for a month and a half and it's very damaging for me. For a professional athlete is very harmful because it is not a matter of standing voluntarily, it is an issue that my arm when I hit a ball again is going to hurt in many places: my wrist, elbow... Standing still in time, the risk of injury on the return is much greater than when you keep an activity no matter how small. If I could train tennis for 30 minutes a day, exercising tennis muscles, I think it would be a breakthrough to the level that my body could be less rusty when I need it. The concern does exist in my case. It exists because in the end the body needs activity, I do at home what I can, but the body when you give it a stop drastically, it is difficult in punished bodies to get them back on. I am confident that we can get going and get back to the overall level we had. But I think the risk in an advanced age is higher than before. Still, I'm sure there will also be positive things within the parón at the overall recovery level of some things, on a physical level, I mean."

- How are they killing time and what do they miss the most?

Rafa Nadal: "What I miss most is contact with people. More than playing tennis. I feel like going to training, yes, I feel like competing yes, to a certain extent. I have internalized the problem a lot and since I do not see a quick solution because I am not at that moment what desire to compete, I am at a different time. I think that I, personally, have a lot left to compete with again, which I am in a moment that my illusion is to see my whole family again, my friends, go out for a party, to the sea to swim for a while... To have the feeling of freedom, to be able to embrace with people. I'm a loving person in general. It seems that there is going to be a very big impas in the way we had to act before, with which we will have to have, but above all that a solution is found.

Even if there are things that are going to change from the future, I am confident that when a solution is found things will be similar again. I don't see a future without being able to hug you with people regularly, meet someone on the circuit I haven't seen for many months and not be able to give them a hug. I am confident that this can be solved, until it is solved, you have to be as careful and you have to be very responsible. But, very difficult times are going to come on many issues. At the economic level I think we are going to suffer a lot and in all sectors, but especially in tourism the impact is going to be devastating for many. You have to be strong. I who partly do this, with the academy and other things that I have, because it is a time to be active and to prepare for what may come and be awake to seek solutions and be prepared for the competition and for all the adversities that will come in the future."

- What is your day-to-day life in confinement?

Rafa Nadal: "I'm basically going to sleep a lot later. Sometimes I find it hard to fall asleep, this is my truth. I try to get up a little later, because the day we organize it the way we can or want. We don't have a fixed schedule as usual. I try to do two fixed work sessions, because this way, among everything, it takes you a little bit more time. Besides, I think it's good for the body that's broken up right now.

Then I try to be very aware of what's going on. For example, we're here now. I've been in a meeting with Novak, Federer and the ATP president talking about things before. Also with my Foundation of the things we are doing and the things we can do for the future. And day by day, looking for solutions in the things I have. The Academy is a big concern, because there are a lot of people who work there and who are suffering. So I'm worried about the workers and the kids inside. Since the state of alarm was decreed we have 85 children within the Academy confined, at risk their families preferred that they stay within the Academy rather than travel for risk of contagion and general safety. This for us has been and is a great effort because we have left 70 workers inside the Academy, coaches, psychologists, kitchen people... Well, people who could supply them. So inside there are about 150 people who can't get out and if they go out they can't go back in. With these drastic measures we have made sure that no one is infected and I think the parents are very grateful. So these are things that have to be solved day by day and you have to try to keep things going forward and follow their course adapting to the moment we are living.

Obviously, I also take the opportunity to play parchís. Every day with my father and his brothers we play some connected game and this kills us a couple of hours a day. And then, at night watch some series and entertain myself in something that doesn't make you focus all day on the negative news, which I think was one of the mistakes I made the first two weeks, being too aware of what was happening at all times and this gets you into a negative loop."

Wish I could understand Spanish. The host of this extremely popular program, Michael Robinson, passed away on Monday and is being deeply mourned in Spain so many of his programs are being rerun. This looks like it was a good one. (Ignore the first video. It's heading the thread and I can't figure out how to get rid of it and only post the Rafa video.)

Translated from Spanish by Microsoft
We remember the program that the space "Robinson Report" dedicated to @RafaelNadal(Sports 2008) in which the tennis player shows some of his most personal places and recalls some of the best moments of his career. https://t.co/AdPshbbsHu

Here's something pretty rare - an interview with Mery!!! She's still very reticent though and avoids saying much about anything. (The google translation is pretty bad. )

Mery Perelló: “The Rafa Nadal Foundation has given me incredible stories of inspiration and improvement”

Confined to her home in Mallorca with the tennis player, she is preparing to celebrate the tenth anniversary of this project born to help the most vulnerable, boys and girls.



Her name is Mery, not Xisca, Perelló, for half a year she has been the wife of one of the greatest tennis players in all history ( Rafa Nadal, for her Rafael ) and these days she is, like everyone, locked up in her house in Manacor where Her husband has become unexpectedly active on social media ... We have seen him cooking, playing mini tennis in the backyard (not with Mery, but with his sister) and training on the treadmill and in the hallways. ..

But the most surprising thing came on Monday, when in a blooper with Federer and Murray that he shared live on Instagram he surprised everyone by talking about his plans as a future dad ... It happened when Murray told him to take advantage of the peace in a house without children on Mallorcan tennis player told him that he hoped to be in his "same situation very soon."

Mery Perelló, discreet as always, did not intervene in all this. She is a graduate in Business Administration and Management, who is already assuming that she will have to blow out the candles for her 32nd confined birthday, she was overturned in her work. It is never folded. Unlike. This obligatory break has meant an unthinkable plus of work as director of the Rafa Nadal foundation . More now that the entity is preparing to celebrate its tenth anniversary, which, in principle, should also be celebrated in Anantapur, the Indian region where they built their first school.

A couple of weeks after the day he would have received us at the Palma headquarters, Mery Perelló attends the interview by phone. Her voice sounds calm and happy. Background music? Nothing ... Then when I get back to telecommuting I might put on something soft, but not necessarily.

Do you have time to get bored?

No! The days are very short. It is all very strange. (Tele) I work non-stop and it works a lot, but time flies by ... I keep getting up early to be able to supply because this year is very important for the Foundation and for all the people it serves. Not only because of the anniversary, but because we must continue from here attending to the needs of our beneficiaries and their families and now more than ever .... If before they were families who were experiencing difficult economic, family and social situations, now the crisis has further aggravated their day to day.


What can be done from home?

Many of the scheduled meetings (Madrid, Barcelona ...) are going to be held or have already been held by videoconference, but we have also made efforts to carry out specific initiatives. For example, at the Rafa Nadal Foundation Center in Palma we have started supporting families by granting them help so that they can cover their basic needs for food and hygiene. In addition, the professionals of the Center are continuously creating teaching materials and "sports" sessions to send families via WhatsApp, since they do not have computers or an internet connection. We are also helping and guiding parents to take steps to apply for public aid and subsidies. In the case of the Center that we have in Valencia we have delivered some packs of school supplies, which have been transmitted to us as a necessity.

The first year of marriage, the tenth year of the Foundation ... and everyone at home. Did you imagine going through a situation like this? What lessons will we learn from all this?

It was unimaginable, it is such an exceptional situation that it does not seem real. As for the lessons, I prefer to focus on the positive ones and I think that a true act of generosity always provokes another. I think that is how we are living it as a society, and it is the way to get ahead.

How do you think the world will change? Will people be more supportive? Will there be more grants and foundations like yours? Or do you think it will be the opposite, that people will look more to themselves?

After what we are experiencing on a social level, I believe that humanity will be more present than ever in personal relationships. I don't know how to tell you how I think the world will change, but it surely will, and a lot. The inequalities will be stronger than ever, but I also think that people will be more supportive, because this virus shows us that it affects everyone equally.

The foundation was also born at a difficult time. After the 2008 crisis ... Do you remember how the idea came about?

Perfectly, even though that was 12 years ago and at that time I was still studying at the university. I do remember that at a social level these were difficult times for many and that Rafael was explaining to me how the initiative was progressing, but I didn't really experience it in the first person. The Foundation was born from the desire to help vulnerable people, since Rafael was already an important tennis player and collaborated with different charitable causes, participated in various events and initiatives ... And at a certain moment, he and his family, especially his mother, thought in the idea of creating their own foundation and thus help the most vulnerable groups: boys and girls. Two years have passed since then. It was in 2010 when it became a reality with the launch of the first two projects.

/2...

2/...


Mery Perelló a few years ago with Pallavi, the girl, now 19, who has grown up in the Anatapur school
Ten years is a long time ... there must already be 'adult children' who have passed through the foundation. Can you explain a specific story?

Yes, there are many years ... with many stories behind. The truth is that the Foundation has given me very inspiring and rewarding moments. Magical. For example, there is the story of Pallavi, a girl from India that I have seen grow in each of my visits to the project that, since 2010, we have in that country: Nadal Educational Tennis School. She started as a student and is now 19 years old and has been part of the coaching team for two years, while she is studying at the university


Rafa Nadal's wife in one of his last encounters with Pallavii, the protagonist of one of the best stories of the foundation

It is an unusual achievement for an Indian woman ...

More in her case. As you know, gender and caste inequality are very present there. And in Pallavi's history, all the ingredients are given. Its beautiful history shows us that with an opportunity and with effort and daily work, the proposed goals can be achieved. She was a girl from a very disadvantaged environment who has grown up with tennis on a daily basis, has learned English in our center, has strived every day to be better and now studies at university. In addition, she is training as a tennis coach and has the possibility of working in the center where she has grown up.

How is confinement being lived in India? What do you explain from there?

In India, confinement was decreed when there were few infected, which is very positive because a country with 1.3 billion inhabitants and a high poverty rate could end up in a dramatic situation. Specifically in Anantapur, which is where our school is, they do not have adequate infrastructures and homes in most cases are small spaces, with many people and without the most basic equipment, so imagine ... Our contacts told me that the Government is delivering food to several towns in the area, which gives some peace of mind.

Do you think that you will be able to celebrate with them the tenth anniversary of the foundation?

In principle it should go in October ... It seems so. That much remains. But everything is so strange and so uncertain that I dare not make any predictions. I would love it because it would mean that things are better, but it will be seen.

To put yourself at the forefront of a foundation like the one you run, you must have training. How dare you? Did you have experience?

Experience none. I have been acquiring it. But I studied Business Administration and Management and took several courses afterwards, although not focused on the social sector. Once I started working at the Foundation if I did a Master specialized in the direction and management of foundations. I think that foundations are becoming more professionalized and the management part should be seen as a company, which helps my career in this regard. But without a doubt, what helps to undertake this beautiful challenge is personal motivation and seeing the needs present in our society.

And also follows a number one on the circuit, that forces an incredible pace. How is it organized under normal circumstances?

Thus, we have a good rhythm of work at the Foundation because we are a relatively small team and there are many things to do, although I am lucky that there is no lack of enthusiasm and professionalism in any of the people who make it up. So the quality of the attention in the projects is fulfilled and also in all the areas that make possible the correct operation of the foundation.

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What would your next trip have been if not for confinement?

I had meetings in Madrid and Barcelona, and for tennis, surely now we would have returned from Monte Carlo ... already in Barcelona, for Godó ... But I don't know very well either. All this situation means that he is not very up to date with what would have happened but with what is happening and trying to live it with positivism. That is why I am focused on teleworking, trying to help those who need it the most.

And what do you miss about the ATP circuit?

Well, I don't know ... I prefer to focus on what's going on, to push this strange situation forward.

Will it affect the circuit? Toni Nadal said that is the least of it, that the important thing is that this situation happens quickly

Tennis is a sport that tournaments are played in different countries every week, therefore, right now it must be difficult to make decisions. But effectively, overcoming the health crisis is the highest priority and the rest of the issues should be addressed when the time is right.

I imagine that Rafa Nadal now has more time to help with the tasks of the Foundation, or is he always fully involved?

As I said before, we are a great little team and we all contribute our part. Although I carry it day by day, I rely on Ana María, Rafael's mother and President of the Foundation, who is very involved in all projects and initiatives, and we talk or see each other almost daily (even before confinement) , Sure!). Rafael is also very involved and pending the proper functioning and new actions, as well as present in decision-making, although it is obvious that professional commitments do not allow him to get involved as much as he would like.

In fact, he has returned to social media after a long lapse of time ...

Obviously he now has more time for everything and, in fact, he for his part has launched the initiative Our Best Victory for the benefit of the Red Cross Respond campaign. In addition, with the Foundation, it helps families directly so that they have their basic needs covered during this hiatus we are experiencing. The truth is that he is collaborating in various actions and is supporting what he can and from home.

By cons, it has opened a door to your privacy. Some magazines of the heart even made a 'virtual' report with the images captured on Instagram.

For real? I haven't seen it. But I do know that Rafael is now very active in the networks because it is a delicate moment and he wants to help in whatever way he can.

We have seen him playing tennis with two sofas as a net! Against your sister, don't you go to the Academy living right next door?

Nerd. We are confined as all. We are very clear from the first day and we train at home as we can.

What else do they do to get fit?

Like all we can. Gums, push-ups, circuit ... at least one hour a day in my case.

We know very little about you ... are you also a very sportsman?

I have exercised a lot but always on a private level. Never seriously. I have played volleyball, I have done gymnastics, fitness and lately running. On vacation I sometimes play paddle tennis with Rafael ...

On your Instagram account there is no image these days ... she is not as active.

No, no ... I don't have any public account.

There is one with your name.

Can. Nor have I stopped to look at it. But it is not mine. That's for sure

He has always highly preserved his privacy and that of his family. In fact, in those images that Rafael shares, he is seen running on a treadmill, in the kitchen frying an egg or in the hallway making rubber bands. You are never seen ...

I do not appear because those images appear in the moment. They are not planned ... in the case of tennis it suddenly came up and they put it up because it was fun. But that's it ... Besides, I've always been very clear that I'm not the famous one. If I am it will be rebound. The one who has done something to deserve it is Rafa, not me ...

On the network it still appears as Xisca and says that your birthday is July 7 ... That you will be 32. What is true in all that?

Well not much ... nobody around me calls me Xisca. And my birthday is soon, I will surely spend it in confinement. But it is not in July. A little less left ...

Here's part of the interview with the four newspapers but it has English subtitles. Yay.

Great video. Thanks for posting it clayqueen. I'm really missing watching Rafa and his magnificent game on his favourite surfrace at this time of the year so this helped assuage my melancholy a bit.

vernonbc said:

Here's part of the interview with the four newspapers but it has English subtitles. Yay.

https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1254873239597142016

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Thanks for posting. She wears almost no make up and is still just uniquely and amazingly beautiful.

Hmm. Surprisingly good compilation of Rafa's career put together by ATP Uncovered.

clayqueen said:

https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1255813646380302340

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Here's the translation of the twitter you posted. Still just the nephew of a famous footballer. How life would change for all of them.

Translated from Spanish by Microsoft
"Rafael Nadal, the new recruit of the Spanish Navy. He is the footballer's nephew and spends many hours playing machines during tournaments: 'Better indoor play and my tournament is Wimbledon'". Trimming of the April 30, 2002 edition of MARCA. https :// t.co/YXJ3yRnefN

Lots of good videos today. This one actually is Carlos Moya - the kids at the Academy asking him questions, and naturally many of them are about Rafa and coaching Rafa.

Good article (unsurprisingly) from Steve Tignor.

NADAL GETS TO THE HEART OF WHAT SO MANY OF US ARE FEELING RIGHT NOW

"I can’t conceive of a future without being able to hug someone from the circuit whom I haven’t seen in months," said the Spaniard in a recent interview.

By Steve Tignor

April 30, 2020

So far during the lockdown, Rafael Nadal has grown a beard and shaved it, played backyard volley games with his sister, helped raise money for the Red Cross, backed the idea of an ATP-WTA merger, and been trounced by Andy Murray in virtual tennis. Even on cyber-clay in “Madrid,” he managed to win just one point.

Despite these efforts to keep busy and distract himself, and despite his star-athlete status, Nadal can’t shake the anxieties and frustrations that have burdened so many of us over the last two months. As he showed in a video interview with Spain’s national sports daily, Marca, this week, he’s also candid enough to admit it. You wouldn’t expect anything less from the most energetic stoic in sports.

“Do I want to compete?” Nadal said, as he searched for an answer to a question that never would have seemed complicated in the past. “Yes, but to some degree, right now, I think I’ve internalized the issue, and since I don’t see a quick solution, I’m not in that mindset where I want to compete.”

In a world where so many want and wish for a quick solution, Rafa isn’t afraid to douse those hopes with the hard truth: There probably isn’t going to be one.

“I believe that difficult times are coming,” Nadal continued, sounding as if he’s confronting the toughest opponent of his career. “[I’ll] prepare for what’s coming, all the adversities that the future may come with, to find solutions, and be ready.”

As The Guardian’s Tumaini Carayol wrote on Twitter, “Nadal’s sober honesty over the past month and a bit has been appreciated….Not every athlete/player sounds as tuned into reality in this moment.”

In short, if Rafa can admit that this problem isn’t going to be solved soon, and find a way to deal with that fact, we can, too.

Nadal went on to talk about what his most immediate concerns and hopes are.

“I think now my wish is to see my whole family and my friends,” he said. “Make a party, go to the sea, swim a little bit, have the feeling of freedom.

“To hug someone else…I can’t conceive of a future without being able to hug someone from the circuit whom I haven’t seen in months.”

Here Nadal gets to the heart of what so many of us are feeling right now, and what’s so uniquely terrible about this time period. COVID-19 is a disease of separation. It keeps people from visiting their loved ones in the hospital, keeps them from sharing their grief with an embrace, keeps them from mourning them together at their funerals. Yes, we want and need to work again, and for professional athletes that means competing again. But first we want to hug, dance, high-five, talk face to face—“make a party,” as Rafa says.

We don’t appreciate what we have until it’s gone—that phrase will never not be true. But did you ever think there would be a time when you couldn’t go wherever you wanted to go, or gather with whoever you wanted to gather? At Thanksgiving, when you thought about what you were grateful for, did those fundamental aspects of life ever cross your mind? Now those are the aspects of life that Nadal, and the rest of us, want back first. “To see my whole family and my friends…make a party…go to the sea, swim a little bit, have the feeling of freedom.” Things so simple, we’re only realizing what they mean to us now.

When sports leagues began to shut down in March, I knew I would miss watching the star players compete. What I didn’t anticipate missing as much were the fans, the sight of them filling arenas, the sounds of their celebratory roars and crushed silences, their rolling waves of emotion coming through my TV set. For years before the coronavirus arrived, we heard laments about how virtual the world had become, about how we stared at our phones instead of talking to each other. But sports always remained live and in person, an arena where we could meet in the flesh. It turns out that, even when we’re watching on TV, our games are about people, and about what happens when we’re free to gather together.

Nadal has spent half his life at the center of those crowds, yet separated from them. Maybe it makes sense that, instead of wishing for a chance to be back in front of them again and hearing their applause, he wishes for personal, physical contact. Instead of wishing he could compete against his fellow players again, he wishes he could hug them. Nadal is a star, but he’s human, too.

https://www.tennis.com/pro-game/2020/04 ... -19/88598/

This makes me want to cry.

Google translation:
"We will see each other again"
"We will hug again"
"We will be back together"

The hopeful words of @RafaelNadal

vernonbc said:

Hmm. Surprisingly good compilation of Rafa's career put together by ATP Uncovered.

https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1255903669138194438

Click to expand...

I miss Rafa, the tennis player, so much that I try to block out of my mind the fact that tennis is on hold for who knows how long.

I miss seeing him warming up on the corridor (when he finally emerges after his opponent has been out for a good 5 minutes) jumping, fixing his socks, taking his headphones off, picking up his racquet, waiting to be announced to the adoring crowd, walking out and acknowledging the applause. He goes to his bench, takes his jacket off whilst shuffling on the spot like Mohamed Ali, sits down, spreads a towel across his legs, takes 2 bottles of water from a ball kid, arranges them on the ground, takes a sachet out of his bag and squeezes it into his mouth, fixes his hair behind his ear then picks up his racquet and jogs to the coin toss where the umpire and his opponent have been waiting patiently. This is just the preamble to the actual match. The above compilation shows Rafa in action and proves that Rafa is, undoubtedly, the most exciting tennis player ever.

clayqueen said:

Click to expand...

Wow this is a rare video. Thanks for the share! The Roddick applause meter was a nice touch! What a prodigy Rafa was at 17 - just see some of the point construction !! Loved it.

Don't know who the woman is that Rafa is talking to but he had a fun laughing chat with her - much of it is sub-titled for us schmoes who don't understand Spanish.

Another subtitled twitter from the same tweeter, this time with Rafa's BFF Tomeu talking about Rafa.

Oh my. Rafa talking about him and Pico being the 'it couple' and Feli talking about partying all night and then going golfing with Rafa the next morning. Have no idea where they were but Rafa looks pretty young in the video.

Wow, Charly Moya says some interesting things about Rafa in this tweet.
ETA: The testsaver link in the first part of the tweet is to an English translation of the whole podcast! The last half or so is about Rafa but even the first part is interesting to hear Charly contrast what his mentality was like compared to Rafa.

vernonbc said:

Don't know who the woman is that Rafa is talking to but he had a fun laughing chat with her - much of it is sub-titled for us schmoes who don't understand Spanish.

https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1256281027795914753

https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1256283091531968514

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Thanks for sharing these. Lovely

More sub-titled interview with Charly.

Old but I really loved how Craig broke down his experience and his analysis of Rafa at Rolland Garros in one his blogs. Must read for any tennis fan, really.


"Our eyes are watching the difficult shot he is currently hitting. His mind is already hitting a forehand winner five shots from now. It’s chess. You make a move. He dominates you with his counter move".

What year is this from?



I know it's recent, but I can't place it He definitely didn't wear it at Roland Garros, right? One of his better outfits, I reckon.

ibbi said:

What year is this from?

I know it's recent, but I can't place it He definitely didn't wear it at Roland Garros, right? One of his better outfits, I reckon.

Click to expand...

Last year clay tuneups, I think.

clayqueen said:

https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1257424232394502155

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This is the only reason Nadal doesn't lead the h2h.

ibbi said:

What year is this from?

I know it's recent, but I can't place it He definitely didn't wear it at Roland Garros, right? One of his better outfits, I reckon.

Click to expand...

Unforgettable.

ibbi said:

What year is this from?

I know it's recent, but I can't place it He definitely didn't wear it at Roland Garros, right? One of his better outfits, I reckon.

Click to expand...

This was 2019 clay tournaments before RG.

clayqueen said:

https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1257366641916235779

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This is great! I found myself sitting here with a goofy smile on my face when Rafa took the mask off them and the people realized it was the real Rafa.

More sub-titled interview, this time with Carlos Costa. Nothing too exciting but kind of interesting.

Rafa Nadal Academy in Manacor
Rafa Nadal Sports Centre in Manacor
The RN Academy is part of the RN Sports Centre

The academy students have returned to training!

RNA: "Now that Mallorca has entered Phase 1 of deescalation, we are back to playing tennis! We have activated the protocols and measures of security and hygiene to guarantee, with your collaboration, the health and well-being of our players. You focus on playing tennis... And we take care of everything else! VAMOS!"

Stay safe, everyone!
Vamos!

Some incredible shots in this clip. There's a link in the tweet to another half hour or so of highlights. What an amazing match that was and Rafa, well, what can you say about this kid. Absolutely amazing.

vernonbc said:

Some incredible shots in this clip. There's a link in the tweet to another half hour or so of highlights. What an amazing match that was and Rafa, well, what can you say about this kid. Absolutely amazing.

Click to expand...

He was so darn good - and that's a huge understatement. What a force of nature

I really miss Coria too. These two could have given us so many more wonderful matches.

Yay!!!

And we might get to see Rafa in July! Woot woot!!


Google Translation
Rafael Nadal and some professional tennis players will return on July 10 for the MapFRE La Liga in Tenis

The Spanish federation (RFET) has confirmed the creation of the MAPFRE Tennis League, a series of tournaments that will bring together Spanish professional players for an unofficial resumption this summer.

Like others before them(Dustin Brown in Germany or Reilly Opelka in the United States), Spanish professional players will soon be able to play again in competition, even if they will not be official tournaments. To comply with the health measures put in place around the world against Coronavirus, these exhibition tournaments will of course be without an audience. But this will not prevent the launch of this circuit of national tournaments, which has been so much discussed in recent days and which already bears a name: the La Liga MAPFRE de Tenis.

This series of tournaments will start on July 10th, with the first stage of the Lleida Tennis Club in Catalonia. Eight players will be present, with a pool stage as has already been seen at the Tennis Point Exhibition Series in Germany or theUTR Pro Match Series in the United States. However, there will be a small change in Spain: the formula to which we have already become accustomed will alternate with a team event, with two groups of five players each fighting for victory thanks to a score system yet to be determined. The best Spanish tennis players will be present: Rafael Nadal (No.2), Roberto Bautista Agut (No.12), Pablo Carreo Busta (No.25) or Feliciano Lopez (No.56).

Our Spanish colleagues from the newspaper MARCA announced a few days ago that the other places of this Liga MAPFRE de Tenis will be Madrid, Villena (Alicante) and Sevilla. The event to be played in the spanish capital would take place at the Campo Club; theEquelite Academy would give life to the Valencia Community Championship (as is the case with the Challenger de Villena)and the exhibition would take place at the Real Club de Tenis Central Le Betis for the Andalusian capital (again, the same venue as the Challenger of Seville, usually held in September, which although it has not been officially cancelled, could be suspended by theATP). In addition, the RFET has confirmed that there will also be a women's tournament, held throughout the country. Details of these events and their dates have yet to be finalized. The rights to the competition have already been purchased by a national television channel, giving fans the opportunity to enjoy these exhibitions. Again, distancing measures will be respected and we should see tennis without an audience, without line judges or ball-pickers. But one thing is certain: we will see Rafael Nadal on court again this summer.

Rafa Nadal Academy in Manacor
Rafa Nadal Sports Centre in Manacor
The RN Academy is part of the RN Sports Centre

Translated from Spanish via Google:
RN Academy: "Toni Nadal, the Director of the Academy, leads a training sessions after returning to tennis courts [after the easing of lockdown restrictions in Mallorca]. Vamos!!"

Vamos Toni Nadal!

Rafa Nadal Academy in Manacor
Rafa Nadal Sports Centre in Manacor
The RN Academy is part of the RN Sports Centre

85 young tennis players and 70 employees spent 57 days in coronavirus lockdown at Rafa's academy. When Spain's government announced the nationwide lockdown (on March 14), there were 123 students at the academy. Parents who wanted their children to return home, could do so. But a lot of students, especially foreigners, were unable to return to their homes due to logistical reasons.

(I didn't want to post the google translation of the article, I hope to find a human-translated version.)



Vamos Rafa's academy!

Eurosport 1 showcases the 2012 RG Final starting at 6 pm. Then at 11.30 pm Nadal joins Eurosport Legends Vodcast to discuss future for tennis in the current climate.

Eurosport
6 hours ago | Updated 6 hours ago
From Monday 18th May, Eurosport viewers will be able to relive some of Rafa Nadal’s most exciting matches throughout his illustrious career to date.

The Nadal-themed week forms part of Players’ Cut, a new series which sees Eurosport celebrate the world’s best players for a week (Monday-Friday, 6-9pm BST).

Players’ Cut will feature six classic Nadal matches, starting with his maiden Grand Slam triumph back at Roland-Garros in 2005, and ending with an epic semi-final clash with Djokovic at the same tournament in 2013.

The weekly special also reprises three classic ‘Fedal’ matches, including their very first Grand Slam head-to-head back at the 2006 Roland-Garros final.
On top of the match replays, there will be exclusive new insight from a man who knows Rafa like the back of his hand; uncle and former coach Toni Nadal.
Toni catches up with Swedish legend Mats Wilander to reveal how the matches truly shaped the career of the 19-time Grand Slam champion.


WATCH
Grand Slam Journey: Nadal on Melbourne breakthrough and his epic Australian Open rivalry with Novak
00:05:01


Schedule:
Monday 18th May – Nadal v Puerta (2005 Roland-Garros final) and Nadal v Federer (2006 Roland-Garros final)
Tuesday 19th May – Nadal v Federer (2009 Australian Open final)
Wednesday 20th May – Nadal v Djokovic (2010 US Open final)
Thursday 21st May – Nadal v Federer (2011 Roland-Garros final)
Friday 22nd May – Nadal v Djokovic (2013 Roland-Garros final)