Watch: Rafael Nadal attends kids event organized by Tennis Australia
20-time Major winner Rafael Nadal attended a kids' event organized by Tennis Australia at the Rod Laver Arena in Melbourne on Tuesday. The orientation of the event, titled 'Rafa Nadal Tour Australian Masters', offered several budding young players the chance to pick up some tennis tips from the man himself.
Tennis Australia's Instagram page uploaded a few reels of the event to their stories. In the video, Nadal can be seen sitting on a chair as he engages the youngsters, who were sitting on the ground. Nadal narrated stories from his own experiences as a young player trying to make his way on the tennis circuit.
It should be noted that Nadal and his team first launched the Rafa Nadal Tour in Spain in 2014. The event focuses on sport and education while combining the competitive aspect of tournaments with fun educational activities for kids. The Australian rung of the event began on Tuesday with 16 players from the U-12 and U-14 categories for both boys and girls, who will play each other in Melbourne this year.
The kids' tournament, however, is yet to kick off, which gave the up-and-coming players an opportunity to let their hair down and enjoy a fun meeting with Rafael Nadal himself.
As the young players listened to Nadal, the caption of the first story read: "Players from the Rafa Nadal Tour Masters learning invaluable lessons from the man himself."
The kids also got to ask Nadal plenty of questions during the orientation of the event, going by the caption of the second story uploaded by Tennis Australia. At the end of the event, Nadal posed for some pictures with the kids on the main court.
Below are some screen-captures of Tennis Australia's story and a reel of the orientation compiled by a Nadal fan.
via Tennis Australia IG Stories https://t.co/3IJVFhH3QB
Rafael Nadal is ready to go all out at Australian Open 2022
Rafael Nadal returned to competitive action at the Melbourne Summer Set earlier this month after being out of commission for nearly six months. The Spaniard's return to pro tennis was successful as he clinched his first ATP title since last year's Rome Masters, beating USA's Maxime Cressy in the championship match.
Nadal, who last won the Australian Open in 2009, will be eager to make an impact at Melbourne Park when the Slam begins on 17 January. The Spaniard has been ramping up his preparations and was spotted working on his game at the Rod Laver Arena with Diego Schwartzman earlier on Tuesday.