A Great Legend: Rafael Nadal waves last farewell to His Tennis Career at the Davis Cup Finals After he…
The last dance of Rafael Nadal’s tennis career: could it be on the courts of Malaga, for the Davis Cup Finals? The teams that will take part in the Final 8 scheduled in the Spanish city from 19 to 24 November have been made official and, among the names chosen by captain David Ferrer, there is also the legendary winner of 22 Slam titles.
Spain, the host of the event, will try to exploit the warmth of their fans to conquer the seventh title in their history and to do so they could count on Rafael Nadal. The Spaniard has been included in the list of players called up to face the Netherlands in the quarterfinals.
The 14-time Roland Garros winner, who has a record of 37 wins and 5 losses in this event and has triumphed five times, was chosen by his former teammate Ferrer, despite not having taken the court since July 21 and his appearances this year have been rather limited.
Rafa will join Carlos Alcaraz, forming a potentially incredible team, considering that Roberto Bautista Agut, Pablo Carreño and Marcel Granollers will be with them. Pedro Martinez and Alejandro Davidovich Fokina are therefore excluded.
In the quarterfinals, Spain will face the Dutch team, which qualified as runners-up in the Bologna group with Italy. Paul Haarhuis, captain of the orange team, has chosen Tallon Griekspoor, Botic van de Zandschulp, Jesper de Jong and Wesley Koolhof, who will fight to defeat Ferrer’s team in search of their first Davis Cup title. It will certainly be a tough task to prevail against the hosts, among the favorite teams for the final victory, but the Dutch performed well against the Italians and showed that they can give anyone a hard time.
Obviously Rafa has not yet taken his presence in Malaga for granted, but obviously many are wondering if the Davis Cup Finals could be the final event of the Spaniard’s extraordinary career. It is difficult to say, just as it is still difficult to understand if Rafa will actually play in Malaga or not. The Spaniard has not definitively closed the door to a comeback in 2025, especially for the tournaments in Rome and, obviously, for the Roland Garros, but making such a hypothesis is too premature.
Alcaraz Admits To Struggles With Motivation Because Of Packed Schedule
by Zachary Wimer
Carlos Alcaraz has talked about the long schedule many times in the past, and it’s impacted his motivation, as he finds it tough to find it at times.
The tennis calendar is very tough and long, which is really tricky for the players, and quite a few of them have voiced their displeasure with it. Alcaraz is one of those, and he’s been particularly active on that front lately, talking about the demanding calendar quite often.
It became a topic again when he mentioned it during the 2024 Laver Cup, and the 21-year-old Spaniard didn’t hold back. He said that he doesn’t like the calendar expanding anymore because this is already quite difficult for the players, but it doesn’t seem like his advice will be listened to.
The calendar has been expanding for a while and will continue to do so because when money gets involved, corporations—which tennis is—likely won’t go the route that yields less profit.
The impacts on players are many, from fatigue to decreased longevity to even motivation. The Spaniard spoke about the length of the calendar and how it impacts his motivation, which is something not many players talked about.
“Well, honestly it is difficult. I mean, sometimes I didn’t feel motivated at all. It is a difficult moment. As I said many times, you know, the calendar is so tight, a lot of tournaments, no days off or not as much days off as I want.”
“Sometimes I really want to take some days for myself that I can’t because I have to practice, I have to travel, I have to, you know, the jet lag sometimes when you’re traveling around the world.”
Swiatek’s No. 1 Ranking Under Threat After Withdrawal From China Open
Sunday, 22 September 2024
“So sometimes you don’t want to go to tournaments, I’m not gonna lie. I have been feeling this, you know, this feeling few times already that I don’t want to go to that tournament because I want to stay at home with my family or my friends, and I have to find the motivation just to go and put the right tennis or the right face in the practice and on the matches.”
None of this should be particularly shocking because players are human, and regular people struggle. Not being motivated enough at times is certainly something that all people feel, whatever their occupation.
While Alcaraz loves tennis and enjoys being on the court, there are other things in life that, on some days, seem more appealing or important. Of course, fatigue also plays role.
“I’m business guy. I always want to win every match that I go, but as I said many, many times, my best tennis show up when I’m smiling and enjoying on court, and sometimes difficult to find that rhythm or that good feeling.”
“So, I mean, I want to be focused on my team and my family and try to play my best in every practice, in every match, to be in the top of the ranking. I think it is the best options to keep motivated.”
Leave a Reply