Naomi Osaka impressed by Rafael Nadal: 'He is a really nice person'
Speaking to reporters in Madrid, Naomi Osaka commented on the great experience she has had in the Rafa Nadal Academy in Mallorca earlier in the week. The Japanese enjoyed her experience. "He’s a really nice person, he was sort of the one talking more than me, which you can kind of tell that that would happen. Yesterday (in Madrid) he went on the court after me and he was talking to me again and I was like 'Woah'", said Osaka on the 17-time Grand Slam winner.
On her physical condition after dealing with an injury, Osaka added: "I haven’t served up until today and basically I was just resting it. Of course, I hit groundstrokes for the past three days because it's not like I could fully rest, but it's not painful, so I think it's looking good. I think in Stuttgart, I did pretty well. I played two really hard matches and I think that I just was able to turn a switch on that I haven’t been able to since the Australian [Open]. It was really fun actually, those matches, so I'm really looking forward to my next one."
On the keys to fit clay, Osaka added: "I think it's fitness and also mental. Because last year I thought the number one thing I could have improved on, on clay, is just prolonging the point, or like accepting when I have to back off being aggressive. So then when I played Donna (Vekic in Stuttgart) ... I just remember telling myself that I don’t have to hit a winner for it to be a good point and I don't have to play perfectly to win, so I think I was able to do that. I was a bit sad I couldn't continue that way of thinking because I had to withdraw but hopefully I can keep it here."
from Tennis World USA http://bit.ly/2PNPBXK
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