Rafael Nadal gives insights into his mentality as a tennis player after his retirement
Rafael Nadal spoke about various aspects of his career on the Served with Andy Roddick podcast.
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Rafael Nadal (via YouTube)
Rafael Nadal recently appeared on Served with Andy Roddick, where he discussed several aspects of his illustrious tennis career. Nadal’s breakthrough came in 2005 when, at just 19 years old, he won his first Grand Slam at the French Open. His game was especially well suited for clay courts, on which the Spaniard won 63 of his 92 singles titles, including a record 14 French Open titles.
Nadal’s rivalry with Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic redefined tennis. In the podcast, he spoke about his strategy in playing with both of them. By defeating Djokovic in the 2010 US Open final, Nadal became the youngest man in the Open Era to accomplish the career Grand Slam at the age of 24, and the first man to win majors on three different surfaces in the same year.
What you have to understand is that my whole life, I was trained to become the best. Every workout was designed to improve me, constantly. I wasn’t training to stay in shape; that didn’t interest me. I was training to improve my tennis. My whole life.
Rafael Nadal via Served with Andy Roddick
Citing persistent injuries and physical limitations that hindered his ability to compete at the highest level, the 22-time Grand Slam champion retired from the sport last year in November. Nadal’s final appearance came during the Davis Cup Finals in Malaga, Spain, where he lost to Botic van de Zandschulp in the quarterfinals.
Rafael Nadal praises the new generation of players
In this podcast, Rafael Nadal also heaped praise on the new generation of players, particularly Carlos Alcaraz, Iga Swiatek, and Jannik Sinner. Alcaraz and Swiatek are known to be great fans of Nadal, with Sinner also considering him a big inspiration alongside Roger Federer.
I think Carlos is a great kid, a great guy, with a very good family behind him, with positive values. They are humble; they are good people, and that’s why Carlos is the way he is. At the end, the values you receive at home, the way you are educated, are the way you show up… I see the same with Iga, with Jannik. I think Jannik is another good guy—he’s not much of a show-off, focused on what he’s doing. Of course, he went through a very tough process last year, and yeah, it’s been amazing how he was able to stay focused on what he’s doing.
Rafael Nadal said
Alcaraz seems to be following steadily in the footsteps of his idol, with whom he also partnered during the men’s doubles at the Paris Olympics. At just 21, Alcaraz has won 17 titles, with 7 of them being on clay.
Iga Swiatek, at the age of 23, has also made her mark on clay, with 10 of her 22 titles being on this surface, including four Roland Garros titles. Nadal also acknowledged ATP World No. 1 Jannik Sinner and his recent struggles with the doping controversy.
Rafael Nadal’s life post-retirement
After his retirement, Nadal has focused a lot on the growth of his tennis academy. He recently announced the opening of a new tennis center in Marbella. The center will be the seventh sports complex since the foundation of his academy in 2016 in Manacor, Mallorca.
Post-retirement, Nadal has also focused on other roles as well. In December 2024, he visited Jeddah for the first time and attended the Next Gen ATP Finals, which was won by Joao Fonseca. This visit was a part of his role as the ambassador of Saudi Tennis.
In January 2025, Nadal was bestowed an honorary doctorate from the University of Salamanca along with Nobel laureate Emmanuelle Charpentier. After his retirement, Nadal attended his first award ceremony at the 77th annual gala of the Spanish newspaper Mundo Deportivo in February 2025, where he was awarded the Excellent Trophy.
Building on the success of their ZEL Hotel brand, Nadal and Melia Hotels International recently celebrated the grand opening of ZEL Punta Cana in the Dominican Republic this March.
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