An Open Letter to Rafa
Italian journalist Guido Monaco wrote a great open letter to Rafa:
G.Monaco works for the Italian journal “IL Tennis Italiano” and was a commentator for Eurosport's Italian-language channel from 2009 - 2019.
Guido Monaco:
¤¤ I would like to write a love letter to an athlete, a man, the greatest warrior sport has ever known.
For more than 15 years, with its completely uncommon performance,
characterizes this wonderful time of year...
The most important and most tradition period for us Europeans and for those who love and know the history of our sport.
Tennis on red ground or if you prefer battered ground, the surface that requires the most quality to excel.
Only those who are technically complete, tactical
and physical, only those who know who can suffer and vary can emerge and shine.
He gets in his personal bubble (the pandemic
for once it has nothing to do with it)
and from April onwards we have the privilege of witnessing a unique and unrepeatable show of strength, strategy and resistance. Endless.
Yet someone still has the courage to minimize and denigrate... it's strong ′′ only ′′ on earth, if it's not okay physically it's not going anywhere... as if the earth had suddenly become a minor surface and forgetting the enormous successes obtained even far from red.
A mix of superficiality, incompetence, lack of sports culture and rooting against to shiver.
Sure, with 20 Slams won in 28 finals, 13 Roland Garros, 12 Barcelona, 11 Montecarlo, 9 titles in Rome and 5 in Madrid, everything else seems little, secondary ..
More than the numbers count how you are on the pitch, how you fight point after point, always, forever.
Until knowledge is given, but sooner or later it will end, I guess.
Every now and then there comes a difficult period, a less convincing defeat or performance and many people judge ′′ it's not him anymore ′′ or ′′ it's over "... it's been happening for ten years now and then, there's no need to say how it ends up instead history, year after year.
The noise of the enemies You warn him and partially
you feed on it, but that's not what makes the difference,
It's something far deeper and more special to always bring you back up, even when you seem struggling.
Like last week in Monte Carlo.
Usually when this happens you don't just come back to winning, but to dominate your opponents.
Very strong opponents, but they are faced with a living legend. The problem, for your rivals and detractors, is that you are the first to rebel against an unsatisfactory standard and still have stimulus to train hard.
And then there's your hunger for victories, which yes, has nothing humane. This part of your brain will be donated to science to understand how you do it,
what moves you, again and then again!
The audience is back, in the stadium you titled not only in life but-case more unique than rare-when you're still in business.
And you're roaring again, punctual as in a magnificent and emotional deja vu.
I don't know when you'll stop leaving everything you have on the field, but you'll still have my eternal admiration and respect.
Anyone who doesn't appreciate the genre misses the show of the essence of sport in the most genuine and wild state.
Losing the best.
At a time when an important part of the most popular and richer sport (firstly the
Your beloved Real dear Rafa, no one is perfect, not even you) offers yet another terrible test of yourself, you are the purest and truest expression
of sport.
Your way of accepting and immerse yourself in the challenge reconciles with sport, but not only, is an inspiration to address many aspects of life.
Maybe you, once you finish your mission on the field, can commit to bringing back some ethics, balance and seriousness to the world of football. With your disarming simplicity, humility and work culture. Values you are already transferring to osmosis to everyone, in your wonderful Academy. Anyone close to you knows it's a goal that tickles and stimulates you.
A goal maybe even more giant than your unimaginable tennis triumphs.
You'd be very believable even in this role.
With all the sports love I'm capable of.
G M M ¤¤
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