What Rafael Nadal Taught Us In One Year

It was one of the worst moments ever imaginable for a Rafan when Rafa lost his French open  match against Soderling. It came out of the blue after a stupendous clay court season when excepting for one final, Rafa had won almost everything. The worst loss of his career was accompanied by the horrible news that Rafa was injured. Then started months of agony when in every Rafan’s heart, there was a silent prayer: let the experts be wrong. Let this not be the end! Even for the greatest optimists among us, the going was tough.

For an impatient Rafan like me, the months of waiting were unbearable . I knew it was in some ways the biggest test of Rafa’s life and career and knew that it was required of every champion. But the days of waiting were tough! When Wimbledon came and Rafa was still not ready, it was a bitter pill to swallow. But that was just the beginning of one long nightmare. The ATP world tour finals when Rafa lost all of his matches was excruciating. Rafa lost to Davydenko in the Qatar final. Davydenko was no longer considering Rafa as a threat and one wondered as to whether the feeling was catching on.

Then came Australian open when Rafans’ hearts once again filled with hope. But it was not to be. Nadal seemed a bit less confident on the big points. He was fighting with his back to the wall, but his fighting spirit, that which we love above all, seemed a bit short. When he retired halfway in the Murray match with injury concerns once again raising their ugly heads, we could only throw our hands in despair. Again?

The wait continued. It was as if some malignant fate was following Rafa as he entered semis and quarters, but could not win a single title. We all knew he needed just one title win, we thirsted for it and at times felt like hitting our heads against the wall (the semi final against Andy Roddick in the Miami open comes to mind, a match which Rafa should have won. His complacency on some of the big points and Roddick’s perseverance did him in). When Rafa insisted that he was playing good citing his semis and quarters, I felt like crying!

Every Rafan might remember and cherish that one moment when s/he saw the old Rafa coming back to life. For some, it might have been the Davis Cup where Rafa tasted the sweetness of success after a long time. But for me, that moment came in the first round of Monte Carlo Open. One day I had switched on the tv and sat wondering as I saw the old Rafa walking with his familiar swagger on the court. This Rafa was not the man I had seen against Andy Roddick and then I saw the clay court and understood our man had finally come home. This was the old Rafa, his on court look of owning his rivals firmly in place on that battle hungry face. When he won the Monte Carlo, it came as no surprise!

To me, the greatest thing Rafa did in the French Open was not winning it. It came in the way he did not allow all the old controversies surrounding Soderling to affect him in any way. He paid Soderling his due, insisted that neither revenge nor a No.1 ranking tempted him .He was at peace with himself and the world around when he came into the final and was rewarded for all that he had gone through.

It was crystal clear to everyone that Rafa was hellbent on winning the Wimbledon. His refusing to celebrate his French Open success, instead deciding to practise for Wimbledon  (I had my fears though) were all tell tale signs. The man was on a mission.

Being superstitious is part and parcel of being a Rafan and for me, there were good signs everywhere before the Wimbledon started. But my faith in those tell-tale signs was tested as I watched Rafa sitting on a chair with the physio massaging his leg. It was a heartbreaking moment as memories of the Australian open resurfaced. Of course, the match against Philipp Petzschner became controversial for other reasons as well. Becker and Petzschner accused Rafa of gamesmanship and Rafa was fined for on court coaching. I do not believe the on court coaching claim. Rafa seemed to be genuinely angry and hurt by it. Was it gamesmanship? I do not know for sure. Rafa may not have taken the medical timeout if he knew he was going to win soon. And it is quite clear that the timeout helped him. On the other hand, he might have felt the pain and needed the timeout to recover. As Rafa himself told us, the pain had appeared in his previous 5 set match against Haase as well (when he did not go for the time out). And surely, Petzschner  also took out a timeout and isn’t it his problem if he got distracted by it?) Rafa later admitted to his injury problem and is going for treatment before the US Open. As we can’t have a conclusive answer, let’s leave it at that. ( I know for hardcore Rafans, such questions may not arise, but this thing gave me some food for thought).

Again, what surprised me at Wimbledon was Rafa’s ability to “let bygones be bygones”. He was fined and to my utter shock, dismissed the thing and moved on with a “Rules are Rules” comment ( I was so angry for him!). I didn’t expect him to play so well against Mathieu. But it seemed as if those incidents had just spurred him on. He did what champions do – used every negative to his advantage!

The Murray match was the one I had feared most, but it turned out to be the best that ever happened to him. He won Britain’s heart once and for all with that victory. The turnaround for me was exemplified in Alan Wilkin’s comments after the match.On ESPN, Wilkins always used to sing the Murray song. Murray was usually the starting and endpoints of his conversation. After the match, Wilkins could not but help gushing about Rafa – his game, his generosity, his charm, the magic he created on court etc. etc. Rafa may have missed out on meeting the queen, but that had not prevented him from winning the people’s hearts. One should also be thankful to Murray for the accolades he showered on Rafa. Not many players would have done what he did.

Rafa came into the final as the “people’s champion” ( in the words of Wilkins) and the only anxious moments came for me when Vijay Amritraj picked Rafa as the favourite to win ( To my recurring delight, Amritraj’s picking Agassi as the winner in the Sampras- Agassi Wimbledon finals was for me a sure sign of Sampras winning the match). But then times were different and for once I concurred with Amritaraj (I switched off the tv once the eulogies went on and one thinking it better not to tempt fate).

Thankfully, this final was about Rafa. Nobody cried ( read Federer), nobody imitated him as he watched on looking a wee bit embarrassed ( read the Djoker). It was not about Rafa overthrowing GOATS or SHEEPS, but coming to his own as one of a kind.

The debates have started. Can Rafa surpass Roger’s tally? Can his knees hold up? Can he win the Slam which has eluded him? Of course for Rafans, the knees are a worry. But as a Rafan, you should worry more if

a)      Rafa starts saying his next match is easy for he has beaten his opponent a thousand times and they, for god’s sake, cannot reinvent themselves.

b)      He devotes his blog to things other than food, his playstation matches, his hopes for Spain and his daily routine.

c)       Federer starts saying Rafa plays as well/better than him. ( Impossible! But if it happens,what will Rafa do? Surely, he will have to call Roger a liar!)

d)      He starts kissing and hugging the trophy without biting it

e)      Toni Nadal walks around carrying Nadal’s bags

 Rafa taught us many things in this one year:  the art of patience, the ability to face his worst and believe that he was just a few steps away from his goals even when nobody could see it, the superhuman ability to steer clear of all negativities, above all the passion to improve. Rafa’s rarity comes in his being able to accept other players’abilities, because he knows that accepting them will not hamper or hurt him in any way, that they merely push him to improve himself. Rafa is born to “outreach his grasp”. It is his lifeblood. All we can do is to watch on entranced for there is no one like him.