Nadal in Argentina: the optimistic message for the national team at the World Cup and the thrill of sharing a double with Sabatini

Buenos Aires has already begun to throb the great day of tennis which will take place this Wednesday at the Arena Parque Roca, where Rafael Nadalthe biggest Grand Slam winner in history (22), will play an exhibition with Casper Ruudnumber three in the world, and with Gabriel Sabatini Y Gisela Dulko. The Spaniard, second in the world rankings, assured, after landing in the Argentine capital and visiting the Iguazu Falls, that he is very enthusiastic about returning to play in our country. “I am happy to be here. The Argentine public is very knowledgeable about this sport, very passionate. Every time I come here they treat me in the best possible way and I always bring with me unforgettable memories and positive energy,” commented the Majorcan, in the frame of a press conference in which there was a lot of talk about tennis and also about football.

Days after the start of Qatar World Cup -and hours after the surprise defeat of the Argentine national team against Saudi Arabia-, the Majorcan lent himself to the football discourse and, while not wanting to hazard a prognosis, he stated that, despite the stumbling block at the debut, the team led from Lionel Messi It is still among his favourites.

“They’ve had a triumphant run to date and positivism and a state of euphoria have been very important. But I’m not much of an extreme: neither much euphoria nor much catastrophism. The world hasn’t changed in the last ten hours. He just lost one game and there are two more in the lead. I think that when a team is prepared with a strong squad and a coach who has managed to generate a very united group and to achieve a winning streak as important as the one it is achieving, the the least they deserve is trust and respect” Rafa analyzed.

“They come from being champions of America, from having one of the best streaks. So why lose confidence over one bad day? As a soccer fan, I believe anything can happen in sports, but I still think that Argentina is a clear candidate to go far” continued the player who acknowledged that although many times, as a Real Madrid fan, he suffered for Messi, he also knew how to have fun.

Apart from the blue and white suit, what are Nadal’s other favorites to lift the cup in Qatar? “It’s hard,” he began. “I would include Argentina, Spain, Brazil, France, Portugal and Germany. I think these teams are, by tradition, by history and by the present, with a a bit advantage over others and have the most options.

Although he hastened to clarify: “But equality in sport is increasing and any team will have a chance to win. Everything is decided to the smallest detail, an outcome cannot be predicted. We’ll see what happens.”

And on his country’s team he added: “A World Cup is lived with the utmost passion and I, as a Spaniard, am confident that tomorrow we will start well. You have to be serene and trust that the job will go well.”

The football talk wasn’t too long. Ruud only said that a few years ago he started watching football more, that he is a Liverpool fan and that Messi seems to be one of the best players in history, with a great reading of the game and incredible ball handling . But the focus was mainly on tennis.

Of today’s and yesterday’s tennis

“It’s very exciting to be able to play here with Raf. We met a few days ago in Turin, so it’s nice to do it again and this time in Buenos Aires, a city I have good memories of. This year I was in February and I managed to win the title, here I also won the first title of my career (in 2020) and when I arrived today I started feeling all those good sensations again. We hope to play tomorrow in a full stadium. It will be very special to share that tour with Raf“, commented the Norwegian.

Nadal anticipated that one of the special moments of this Wednesday will be sharing the court with Sabatini, the best player in the history of national tennis.

“It’s a grand illusion. I know Gabby She is a great icon in this country and also in the world of sport and especially Latin sports,” said the 36-year-old Spaniard. “Sharing a track with her is a great satisfaction and an illusion. It will be nice for both Casper and me to experience a moment like this in their country.”

A funny moment was experienced when both were asked if – at the beginning and now – they would like to change something about the sport they dedicate their lives to.

“Selfishly, it’s better not to change anything, because the race was quite good,” Rafa commented between laughs.

More seriously, he said: “For me, personally, today I would like to see tennis that is more diverse, that offers more styles of play. I think the way it is played and the way the courts and balls are made, most today play a very similar style. The speed and conditions in which we play give you very little space to practice a different tactic or thought. Everything goes very fast and you don’t have the possibility to think. Tennis has changed, when I arrived on the circuit many years ago, it was played differently than it is today and both Novak and Roger and I adapted to it and this allowed us to extend our careers a lot, but nostalgically speaking I like that old tennis better”.

Ruud interpreted the question differently and shot the funniest moment of the afternoon.

“I would like to change a result in the history of tennis”, he began after reflecting for a few long seconds. “And no, that wouldn’t be the end of Roland Garros this year, because that was not an even match (Ed: the Majorcan defeated him 6-3, 6-3 and 6-0). I would say the final he lost Raf with Novak in Australian Open of 2012. I think I ended up sadder than him in that game. I watched television for six hours and I wanted Rafa to win. He was my idol. And I still hope that I would have won and I would like to change that result” commented the Norwegian.

Nadal saw the opportunity and fired: “Well, maybe we could call Novak. Maybe he could give the trophy back.” “I don’t think they’d like him,” Ruud concluded, to laughter from the crowd.

Looking to 2023

Looking ahead – beyond what will happen this Wednesday and the rest of the tour – the Norwegian, this year’s finalist in the French Grand Slam, in US Open and, last week, in the Master of TurinHe commented that he feels he hasn’t hit his limit yet and that he is very happy that he is.

“I had great results in 2022. And that gives me confidence for what’s to come. My goal at the start of the season was to reach the quarterfinals of a Grand Slam and I’ve reached two finals, in which I lost to better players than I was surprised, I’m aware of my strengths, but I think I need to improve my level of tennis in general, be more aggressive, enter the net better, gain more experience… I still have a lot of room for improvement and I like it. glad I’m not a complete player yet” he commented.

Nadal has had a fierce start to this year (with consecrations in Melbourne, the Australian OpenAcapulco and Roland Garros (where he reached his 22nd Slam) and closed as an escort for his compatriot Carlos Alcaraz in ranking. And he said he hopes to be able to fight for the big titles again in 2023.

“My illusion of moving forward is intact. I’ve had difficult months, with physical problems. I recently became a father, something I don’t know how it will affect my career in the future. I’m eager for work, to get back in shape, I needed those matches in these first six months because injuries didn’t allow me to spend more time on the circuit” said the Spaniard. “My first goal is to spend more days on tour, to have real options to compete for the stuff that really excites me.”