“Situations Can Change Very Quick”: Rafael Nadal Reveals Tackling Variable on-Court Conditions

In a career spanning almost two decades, Rafael Nadal has achieved several heights and set unbreakable records, especially on clay. With the clay-court season in full swing, Nadal is the favorite to win almost all the tournaments; he is also the prime contender at the French Open this year. 

Responding to questions after his comfortable victory over Grigor Dimitrov at the Monte Carlo Masters, Nadal was asked whether there was a particular moment during a match where he feels that it will be his day on the court.

Rafael Nadal explains the need to keep going

The Spaniard, who is known to have one of the intelligent minds on a tennis court, said that he always puts his mind on what can go wrong despite playing well on a given day.  

“Well, you know what, I never think that way because I am always focused on what can happen,” Nadal said. 

He also reflected on the need to continue to do consistent work during a match as things can change very quickly on a tennis court. 

“It’s not about I’m going on court and I’m feeling good today so things going to go well, no. I feel good, so I need to keep going. That’s the way I proceed”,  Nadal added.  

Nadal says the situations can change quickly on a tennis court

During the initial stages of his career, Nadal was branded a clay-court specialist. Yet, he was able to adapt to the varying conditions of hard and grass courts and defeated his arch-rivals Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic numerous times. 

Nadal also explained how situations change during a tournament irrespective of how a player feels during practice. 

“When you are practicing well, then is easier to play well, no? Sometimes you are playing bad, and arrive at a tournament, and you win a couple of matches, then things change.” Nadal explained. 

Talking about the varying conditions on a tennis court, Nadal added “The situation can change very quickly in the sport. You need to be always ready for the quick changes and accept it.”

The Spaniard is known to embrace and be ready for any challenge the opponent throws on-court. One instance of his tactical brilliance is how he uses serve-and-volley to get quick points on serve.