World no. 2 Rafael Nadal has embraced a different kind of battle in the last five weeks, replacing the tennis court with cooperation with the fellow Spanish athletes in the fight against the coronavirus pandemic that has severely affected Spain.
The 19-time Major champion joined forces with the basketball legend and his close friend Pau Gasol, forming a Red Cross campaign Nuestra Mejor Victoria and trying to collect as much money as possible for all those who have been suffering due to a pandemic in the last couple of months.
Besides many other activities, Rafa has donated one of his shirts from 2019 Roland Garros final that will now go to the auction, with all the funds raised going to the Red Cross campaign. Battling with Novak Djokovic, Nadal managed to finish the previous season as world no.
1 for the fifth time in a career, winning Roland Garros and the US Open to move just a Major away from Roger Federer who stands on 20. En route to the 12th Roland Garros crown, Rafa toppled Kei Nishikori, Roger Federer and Dominic Thiem, ousting the Austrian 6-3, 5-7, 6-1, 6-1 in just over three hours to write history books once again and extend an unprecedented dominance in Paris that will never be repeated.
“For this auction, I wanted to donate the shirt with which I won Roland Garros in 2019. I do not know if it is the one I ended the match in but one with which I played on the day of the final,” said Nadal. “It is a shirt that has great meaning for me.
I hope you value it and the auction raises as much money as possible for all these people who are suffering so much and need all our support.”
When Rafael Nadal Made Novak Djokovic Bend The Knee
Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic had the ultimate face-off at the finals of the Monte Carlo Masters 2009. With both stars quickly becoming the best in world tennis, this showdown was an opportunity for the fans to watch them at their best levels.
For many, the result of the match was a foregone conclusion. Rafa was brilliant on clay and he had already earned the “King Of Clay” status. More than that, he had won four straight titles at Monte Carlo.
The match was witness to some pretty great rallies as Rafa won 6-3, 2-6, 6-1 to claim his fifth successive title. Recently, the Rafa Nadal academy shared a video of one of the brilliant rallies from the match. Let’s find out more about this rally.
Rafael Nadal displays brilliant agility
The rally was characteristically long given the clay surface. Thus, it was more like a game of chess where the player who could seize the right moment would take away the point.
As the rally stretched on with both players chopping and slashing at the ball, Novak played a pretty well-timed drop shot which looked pretty far away from Nadal reach. However, Rafa ran the fastest than we had seen him run and executed a brilliant return to take away the point.
The point was very crucial considering how brilliantly the match was poised until that moment. Rafa had taken the first set 6-3 and Novak took the second set 6-3. Novak was leading the first game of the third set 40-30 on Rafael Nadal’s serve. After this shocker, Novak was visibly upset as he kneeled to the ground with a very sad expression.
Of course things would continue to go out of hand for him as Rafa took the set 6-1. Nadal once again proved that his feats on clay were no fluke. Once again the entire world had to bow before the king of clay courts.
