Rafael Nadal: 'It’s important to keep head and body awaken'

Former World number one, winner of 85 ATP titles including 12 editions of Roland Garros, 11 of Monte Carlo and Barcelona, Rafael Nadal is rightly considered the best tennis player in history on clay. Just think that, on this surface, the Spaniard has conquered over 90% of the matches played.

Nadal is a clay court specialist in the sense that he has been extremely successful on that surface. However, Rafa has shed that label owing to his success on other surfaces, including holding simultaneous Grand Slam tournament titles on grass, hard courts, and clay on two separate occasions, winning ten Masters series titles on hard court, and winning the Olympic gold medal on hardcourt.

Despite praise for Nadal's talent and skill, in the past, some had questioned his longevity in the sport, citing his build and playing style as conducive to injury. Nadal himself has admitted to the physical toll hard courts place on ATP Tour players, calling for a reevaluated tour schedule featuring fewer hard court tournaments. This "longevity" narrative has proved to be inaccurate and pundits today admire his resilience.

The former World number 1 revealed that he had begun taking his physical health seriously amidst the lazy months. “I’m trying each day to do some aerobic training to keep preparing. There are days when sometimes you don’t want to do anything. But I believe it is very important to keep the head and body awaken, so I think it’s vital to settle physical objectives with what each of us can and have at our disposal because we are all locked inside under different circumstances each of us.

But if we can, we need to make an effort to do some exercise each day. It will help us be more positive and leave this confinement a little less bad that is getting longer and harder. Sending a hug to everyone and cheering you to do a little bit of exercise each day" - the 19 time Grand Slam champion said.

from Tennis World USA https://ift.tt/2xQF9KI