"Nobody in my career told me this; I never do nothing to bother the opponent" - When Rafael Nadal addressed Roger Federer's complaints about his grunt
Rafael Nadal once responded to Roger Federer's complaints about his grunting at the Australian Open.
Federer and Nadal established one of the most compelling rivalries in tennis history, facing each other in 40 tour-level encounters.
One of their memorable encounters took place in the semifinals of the 2014 Australian Open, where Nadal claimed a commanding 7-6(4), 6-3, 6-3 victory.
During a tense moment in the blockbuster clash, Federer approached the umpire and raised a complaint about the Spaniard's grunt.
The Swiss elaborated on his grievance in the post-match press conference, disclosing that his issue stemmed from the inconsistency in Nadal's grunting.
"Not when he does it every point. But it goes in phases. One point he does and he doesn't. That's just what I was complaining about," he said.
Rafael Nadal addressed the Swiss' complaints after his win, emphasizing that he never deliberately tries to disturb his opponent during a match.
"I really don't know that. When I am playing, when I am hitting the ball during the point, the last thing that I am thinking is try to bother the opponent. Only thing that I am focusing is try to hit my ball well. That's it," he said in the post-match press conference.
The Spaniard also expressed surprise at the accusation, highlighting that nobody had ever brought such an issue to his attention previously.
He confidently asserted that even Federer would recognize that any disturbance was unintentional.
"I am sorry if I bothered somebody, but I never did in the past. So is something that nobody in my career, you know, told me nothing about this, that I am bothering the opponent," he said.
"But if I bothered him in any moment, he knows 100% it was not because I wanted. I never do nothing on court to bother the opponent. I think I did the normal things that I do in every match," he added.
Rafael Nadal: "When you go on court against Roger Federer, I go knowing that I am playing against a player that is unbelievable"
Rafael Nadal also reflected on his impressive track record against Roger Federer, attributing his triumph in the 2014 Australian Open semifinal to his past successes against the Swiss.
"Well, the real thing is I played a lot of times against him, and a lot of times I played great against him. So probably that's why I had this success against him," he said during the same press conference.
However, the Spaniard emphasized that he never took his wins against Federer for granted, disclosing that he always entered their clashes with the knowledge that he was competing against an "unbelievable" player.
"But you never know when that stop. Today I am happy that I am able to win against him again. When you go on court against Roger, even if we played each other 32 times I think before this one and I was able to win against him 22, I go on court knowing that I am playing against a player that is unbelievable," he added.
Rafael Nadal fell short of winning the 2014 Australian Open title, as Stan Wawrinka beat him 6-3, 6-2, 3-6, 6-3 in the final to clinch his maiden Grand Slam title.