“Has Got Such a Great Mentality”: Andy Murray Feels Absence of Crowd Does Not Affect Rafael Nadal’s Performance

Rafael Nadal will have to wait for some more time in order to win his maiden ATP Finals trophy. Although the Spaniard reached the semis this time, he could not battle past Daniil Medvedev. The World No.4 Medvedev defeated Rafa despite losing the first set with the final scoreline of 3-6, 7-6, 6-3.

Many tennis fans even believe that one of the reasons that Rafa lost the match was the absence of fans. However, former World No.1 Andy Murray does not agree with this. The British player said that crowds wouldn’t affect a champion like Nadal.

“For someone like Rafa, I don’t think that crowd affects him that much,” began the enthusiastic Murray. “Because I think he has got such a great mentality, his energy, and his stuff on the court is always really really good. He has got a great attitude.”

The 3-time Grand Slam champion Murray clearly highlighted that Nadal would be a competitive player even without a crowd cheering for him. According to Murray, Rafa is one of those whose game speaks for him.

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“Don’t think it affects Rafa’s performance”- Andy Murray on Rafael Nadal

Murray admitted that the crowd behind Rafa could however be dangerous for his opponent. It could act as an extra advantage for Rafa, especially when his opponent was in a pressure situation.

“If the crowd is behind him, it can sometimes have an effect on the opponent. In big moments. a break-point, it’ll be different when you step up on the line and all the crowd would be making a big noise, getting behind you know Rafa,” added Murray.

Murray reiterated that crowds really didn’t affect Nadal’s performance by citing the example of the French Open 2020. All the fans saw how brilliantly he played when all the odds from the crowd to conditions were against him.

“I don’t think it affects Rafa’s performance too much. As we saw in this year at the French Open this year, there was no crowd but he still dominated,” concluded Murray.

One simply can’t win 20 Grand Slam titles with the help of the crowd only. Though Rafa has millions of fans, it is his extraordinary gameplay that has helped him reach where he is today.