Rafael Nadal: "Suddenly it seems winning Roland Garros is completing your work day, I have not usually let that happen"
Rafael Nadal is not one to take victories for granted, but that does not mean the 22-time Grand Slam champion is immune to thoughts like that.
In a recent interview with El Pais, Nadal admitted that there have been times where winning felt like a "draw" because it was something that was just expected of him.
In his career so far, the Mallorcan has won 14 titles at the French Open, 11 at Monte-Carlo and 10 at the Italian Open, all records at the respective events. The 37-year-old stated that whenever it started to feel like winning the French Open was just "completing his work day," he would immediately assemble his team and look into the matter.
In his opinion, sports cannot be similar, in any way, to a daily job, and should instead be filled with passion and "madness."
"There has been a moment in my career when winning has been a draw, and that feeling is ugly: it is taken for granted that you have to win. Suddenly, winning Monte Carlo is what you have to do. Not good. That makes you a worker who has to deliver. And suddenly it seems that winning Roland Garros is completing your work day," Rafael Nadal said.
"I have not usually let that happen, it has rarely happened to me and, when it has, I have met with my people and told them: “Let's analyze this, get rid of this thought.” Because sport cannot be a job where you go to fulfill the record. There has to be illusion, madness, flame," he added.
Rafael Nadal: "I had a great mental preparation when I was young, I trained as a child for many hours"
Rafael Nadal credited his childhood and his uncle Toni, who coached him from the beginning until recently handing over the reins to Carlos Moya, for giving him the mental preparation needed for tennis and getting him ready to deal with stressful situations.
Because of that time with his uncle, Nadal now believes in using the feeling of pain to value the good things that have happened to him, instead of seeing it as a means to destroy his opponents.
"I had a great mental preparation when I was young. I trained as a child for many hours, under a lot of pressure and with great intensity. My uncle [Toni Nadal] demanded a lot from me. He was used to living in daily stressful situations," Rafael Nadal said.
"He helped me build a character that has served me well for what came next. For me, pain has not helped me defeat my opponents. The only thing that pain has helped me is to value the good things that have happened to me," he added.