Rafael Nadal

[tina]

sabz thanks for posting it

[reese]

wow is someone watching the nadal - mathieu match??? Paulo is giving Nadal a hard time!
Paulo is leading 7-5; 2-1 the 2-1 took 30 minutes
I didnt expect that

[Mariana]

It was a great great match I really enjoyed the game, they both played really well

It was a good gift for Rafa! Happy birthday

[Annie]

Happy Birthday Rafa!!!! Amazing game!!!!!!! Great play from both!!!! ;D ;D ;D

[SAFINNO1]

This is how much it meant to Rafa, happy 20th Brithday.

Wonder what he says in his blog!

[alsl]

Hard to believe he's not a teen anymore!!


Hi everyone,

Here I am again on a very special day. As you know today it was my 20th birthday. That means I am no longer a teenager!!! Not sure if that's good or bad. [glow=red,2,300]<see even he says so!>[/glow]

Well, it was a special day: My birthday and a very difficult match. I knew it was going to be difficult and therefore I was a bit nervous before the match. To play a French player at home is never easy and on top of that Paul-Henri plays great tennis as everyone has seen. Sometimes people think it is easy for us, but believe me it is very difficult.

Today as I mentioned to you yesterday, I got a 10 am pick up at the hotel and we headed again for the site. Being Saturday morning, the traffic to get to the site was much better and that means that in 15 minutes we were there.

People are very nice with me and a lot of them knew it was my birthday so from the driver who took us to the site, the people at the security at the tournament and everyone that works there gave us the good morning with a big smile and a happy birthday. So the first thing I want to say is thanks to all of you who have been sending me messages in any way.

Coming to my day, as you can imagine, 5 hours of today were taken by a match. I am playing too many of these, right? In Rome over 5 hours and today nearly 5 hours... With days like this the day goes fast.

I warmed up again with Martin del Potro. For those of you who don't know him, he is a very tall Argentinean player that plays really good. I think he is over 1m 90. You will hear that name in the future. He left today to Buenos Aires so I am changing tomorrow to another partner to hit with.

I took things easy today and stayed most of the time in the locker room. You want to stay calm and quiet before such an important match and therefore I only went upstairs to get some food.

I am not going to talk about the match since some of you have seen it on TV (or in the stadium) and also the media is giving reports of it. Right after the match I was very tired and I have a picture there to prove it. It was getting late and they told me that I had to go somewhere before going to press. It happened to be a surprise and they gave me a cake (it was pretty good although I don't know what was it) and some champagne. The tournament people, ATP and ITF had prepared all the photographers and TVs there to take pictures of it.

My uncle Toni and his wife and daughter were there as well. Toni came close to me and put the cake on my face. ;D ;D ;D Thank God it was a hard one and it did not stay. The funny thing was that the candles where like rockets and I got pretty scared since the fire was pretty big. We all drank some of the champagne and ate the cake with the media and organizers. This is very nice of them and I want to thank them. Last year my birthday was also in this tournament and I remember that Pau Gasol brought in the cake into the press conference room. I still remember it.

So we got pretty late to the press conference. I think it was around 9.30 pm. I have also sent a picture they took of me at the press conference and another one with the t-shirt that the Spanish journalists gave me as a present.

Guys, thank you very much for the t-shirt and for all the time you follow me. We have to take a picture of all of you and post it here also so that people see your faces.

After the press conference, I think it was 10 pm or so, we went to the transport office to get a car to take us back to the hotel. It was already dark and when we passed the Eiffel Tower, I took a picture of it. It is really nice at night with all the lights illuminating it.

Apparently my team had booked a table at a very nice restaurant in Paris to celebrate the birthday but since it was so late they had to cancel it (I was also very tired) and we decided to go to the pizzeria we have been going to these days. I ate some fried gambas with rice and some grilled fish (loup in French).

Carlos Costa took a picture of the group. You will recognise there also is Alex Corretja who came with us since he is also staying at the same hotel. We talked about the match, about funny stories on tour such as old matches, surprise results in the past, the World Cup and other things.

Anyway, I am going to leave you guys since I am writing this after dinner, it is late and I still have to get a short massage. Tomorrow I am going late to the tournament to get a light practice around 2 pm.

See you all tomorrow.

Rafa

check out the photos :http://www.atptennis.com/en/blog/nadal.asp

[iman]

i got to watch the nadal and mathieu match....and there were some terrific pointes won by mathieu....i actaully thought that he could maake it go to five sets.....but once again rafa didnt falter.....

[alsl]

rafa touring

[Mariana]

Thanks for the pics alsl

Vamos Rafa

[Tish]

Good luck to Rafa in the finals, he has had a very good grand slam so far and I think it will be an exciting match to watch tonite well in less than twenty minutes...

Vamos Rafa

[LaFFy TaFFy]

VAMOS RAFA

[LaFFy TaFFy]

way to go rafa, winning in 4 great sets

VAMOS

[sonya]

Day 14 - An interview with Rafael Nadal
Saturday, June 10, 2006



Q. After the Rome final, Roger Federer said, "Now I guess I know how to beat him." What do you think? How can he do this probably?

RAFAEL NADAL: I don't think nothing about that, no? Maybe he can beat me not now, after Rome. He can beat me in Monte‑Carlo, last year here, in Rome. Every time he can beat me. He is No. 1. I need find solution for beat him, not he find a solution for beat me, no?

Q. If you compare these finals of Rome, Monte‑Carlo, do you think the two of you got closer together, or the games were closer?

RAFAEL NADAL: Maybe that's not true. That's not true. Maybe that's not true. Every match is different. Every match is different history. Every match is different sensations, different places. Is not we can't compare one with other one. Is not exactly now he know me better and he can beat me because he can beat me in Monte‑Carlo and in every place. He's the best of the world, one of the best of the history, no? He can beat me in clay, for sure. But not now; every time, no?

Q. Are you getting used to all the show biz, coming today, talking to the journalists, the publicity? Does it make you tired or are you getting used to it?

RAFAEL NADAL: No, I know I need do that. Is a part of the work. And I know, no? I know why we need do that, no?

Q. Tomorrow's final, are you waiting it with tension because of the intensity of the match or are you waiting it with, I would say, tennis appetite?

RAFAEL NADAL: No, I am waiting with motivation. I wait with motivation and with...

Q. Is there an extra stress of playing against Federer compared to the other matches?

RAFAEL NADAL: No, is against the No. 1. I know he's the No. 1. He has the pression. I want to win, sure, but he has the most pression, no? He's the favorite. If he win tomorrow, he have the Grand Slam.

So for me, he has more pression than me, no? I gonna try my best. But I am quiet, no? I am with calm now. Tomorrow before the match I gonna be nervous, sure.

Q. But do you sincerely believe he is the favorite?

RAFAEL NADAL: Yeah, sure.

BENITO PEREZ‑BARBADILLO: He says he's not throwing balls away. He said, "I'm not throwing balls away."

Q. What do you remember about last year's final? Puerta seemed to be injured at the beginning, then he played very, very good. It was very exciting for you. It was a closer match than you expected?

RAFAEL NADAL: Final last year?

Q. Last year against Puerta, it was a very good match, you enjoy?

RAFAEL NADAL: I enjoy and suffer. It was a very, very tough match. Nice, maybe. Many emotions, emotive. So I remember exactly the final. I watch this final on TV a lot of times. I run a lot. I was running a lot and fight a lot, no? So I had a very good remember all last year, no.

Q. You think it is sad that Puerta cannot play now, or that's the rules and that's how it has to be?

RAFAEL NADAL: I don't want to speak about that, no? Because I always think about the good faith of the players, and maybe is a mistake. So I don't want to speak about nothing because he's a... (in Spanish).

BENITO PEREZ‑BARBADILLO: Working companion.

RAFAEL NADAL: Working companion. I don't want to think he want to do the doping he don't won. Is better lose the final of Roland Garros for sure than not play for never, no?

Q. You've been unbeaten on clay for over 50 games in a row. How much confidence do you take out of this fact? How much confidence does this give to you?

RAFAEL NADAL: No, is confidence for sure. I have 59 matches consecutive on clay, so that's an unbelievable record for me.

Is very difficult. I know very much I could lose, sure, but when I go to the court I feel with confidence for that, too, no?

THE MODERATOR: Questions in Spanish.

Q. What is the difference between the final of last year and this final? The match, the opponent, everything?

RAFAEL NADAL: I don't like comparing previous years with this year. I don't think you can compare. It's different times, different situations. It's a different moment in life. I don't think we can compare. These are two entirely different finals.

Last year and this final are completely different. I think last year I was probably the favorite. This year it's not the case. It's a completely different moment.

Q. How are you preparing from the mental point of view for the final? And, second question, what past player would you have liked to play a final of Roland Garros against?

RAFAEL NADAL: Well, I'm going to prepare the same as any other match. I don't think I'm going to do anything special. I like to follow my routine. I think it's extra pressure to change your preparation. I'm going to try to prepare the same as ever.

And in terms of players of the past that I would have liked to face Kuerten. I think I would have liked to play a number of players.

Q. Can you explain the influence of your uncle Miguel Angel on your career?

RAFAEL NADAL: Miguel Angel?

Q. Yes, his influence. Did he have an influence on you when you were a child?

RAFAEL NADAL: I don't think so. I think that my family benefitted from the experience. I think that it helped me to assimilate a number of things. It served as a reference, possibly.

But he also had his life, he had his work. Until last year practically, I didn't see him that much. I saw him when he was home in Mallorca, but he was frequently away and I was frequently away as well.

Q. We know that you don't really like to change your tennis in terms of your opponents, but you want to be more aggressive against Federer?
RAFAEL NADAL: Yes, but I'll follow my usual game. You have to play your own game. If you try to do something you don't know how to do, you'll probably play badly. I'm going to play my usual game, my usual tennis. That is the starting point. I might try to attack a little bit more, to be a little bit more aggressive, to try to get into control of the match.


taken from www.rolandgarros.com/

[sonya]

Toni Nadal: 'Stick to the game plan'
By Georges Homsi
Saturday, June 10, 2006

Toni Nadal - uncle and coach of the world No2 - knows that his nephew will have absolutely no room for error in Sunday's final against Roger Federer.

It's the dream final - Rafael and Roger Federer... How do you think this clash of the titans will play out?>
It's going to be a tough match. Federer is the best player in the world, and he could well become one of the best of all time. Even if Rafael did manage to win his recent matches against Federer, it will by no means be easy for him tomorrow.

The last two times they met, the matches were really tight. Has Rafael learned any lessons from >Monte Carlo> and >Rome>?>
I don't know. It will be very tough for Rafael, but that's not to say that it'll be easy for Federer. But if Federer does turn out to be too strong for him tomorrow, then that's just the way it is, and there's nothing you can do about it. Each time the two of them play each other, I always think that it will be unbelievably tough for Rafael, but each time, for over a year now, he has shown me that he's capable of winning. He never ceases to amaze me. However well I may think I know him, he just keeps on surprising me. In sport, though, you can't always win, and sometimes you can play really well but it's not enough.

What advice have you given him in the run-up to the final?>
What I always say - stick to the game plan that we set out. He has to be very strong psychologically, move about the court well, and if he manages to do that, then he'll have a chance of winning.

taken from www.rolandgarros.com/

[SAFINNO1]

Nadal ends Federer dream in Paris

Nadal took his career record at Roland Garros to 14-0
Rafael Nadal retained his French Open title and ended Roger Federer's hopes of holding all four Grand Slam titles at once with a four-set win on Sunday.
The 20-year-old Spaniard became the first man to beat Federer in a Grand Slam final, winning 1-6 6-1 6-4 7-6 (7-4) in three hours two minutes.

Federer suffered an alarming slump in form after an impressive first set.

And Nadal took full advantage, dominating for three sets and sealing victory on his first match point.

Nadal has now won 60 consecutive matches on clay and is unbeaten at Roland Garros with a 14-0 record after winning on his debut last year.

It was a huge anti-climax for Federer, who failed to maintain anything like his best form as he tried to join Don Budge and Rod Laver as the only men to hold all four Grand Slam titles at the same time.

The Swiss star went into the match with a poor 1-5 record against Nadal but insisted he was confident of turning things around.

He made a nervous start, slipping 15-40 down in his opening service game, but coming through to hold seemed to instil belief in the Swiss star.

Federer broke Nadal immediately and then repeated the effort to go 5-0 up on his way to taking the first set.

It was at that point that the enormity of what could happen appeared to hit Federer, and his game unravelled.

Nadal had missed five break points in the first set but finally converted his seventh to go 2-0 up in the second set and he raced through it to level.

A total of 16 unforced errors from Federer told the story of the second set and it was a similar story in the third.

Federer's big chance came with three break points in game four but Nadal held from 0-40 and then broke in the following game.

The Spaniard served out the set and when he broke early in the fourth the title appeared to be his.

There was one last effort from a low-key Federer, with Nadal feeling the pressure when serving for the title at 5-4.

But it was only a momentary blip from the 20-year-old, who took control of the tie-break with four straight points and clinched the match with a winning forehand.