66 SPORTS ILLUSTRATED
This January Nadal arrived in Melbourne as
the 2020 Australian Open’s top seed. In the Great
Tennis G.O.A.T. Race, Nadal’s 19 majors put him
three ahead of Djokovic and one behind Federer’s
record of 20. (The last time Nadal was this close
to catching his rival, Federer led 1–0.)
Before he renewed his quest, Nadal sat down
for a wide-ranging 60 Minutes interview in his
home of Mallorca, the Spanish island where he
was born, where he lives and where he intends
to always reside. Here are some excerpts from
the interview, lightly edited and translated from
Nadal’s native tongue for brevity and clarity.
SI: You’re 33 years old. You’re world No. 1. How do
you explain that?
Rafael Nadal: No one could have predicted this. I
always repeat the same things. No one could
have foreseen that I was going to be a 12-time
Roland Garros [champion] or No. 1 in the
rankings as a 33-year-old. Things don’t go
zero to 100. But with the day-to-day, trying
to win a match here, a match there, trying to
improve.... People say, “This is a sacrifice.”
But for me this is not a sacrifice because I do
it with enthusiasm.
SI: You don’t feel you’re making sacrifices?
RN: No, I don’t think so. I never felt that what I
was doing was a sacrifice. I trained, yes. I have
worked very hard, at the maximum, yes. But
I have enjoyed every single thing. For me, a
sacrifice means that you are doing the things
that you don’t like doing.
SI: You’re a lucky man.
RN: I can say very loud and clear that I’m very
lucky for all of the things I have enjoyed
in life. But I have to say that my life is not
only tennis. I have been out partying with
my friends. Not every Saturday night, as
they did, but I’ve been out partying with my
friends. I have been fishing with my friends.
I’ve had a normal life. Maybe less often than
my friends, but I don’t think I’ve missed out
on important things in my childhood. I’ve
done all of the same things that my friends
did, but less frequently. Which makes me
feel very happy.
SI: We met for the first time in 2005. You were 18
years old. Who was this guy?
RN: For me, that year, in 2005, everything went
very fast. But then everything slowed down.
In 2003 and ’04, I had some significant
injuries. So, in ’05, I went from No. 50 in the
rankings to No. 2 in four months. That was
really a radical, fast change in my career and in
my life.
SI: In many ways, you seem to me very much the
same person as that 18-year-old kid. You hear
it all the time: “Nadal hasn’t been changed by
fame and celebrity and success.” How does that
make you feel to hear that?
RN: I think this is good news. It means that at
least you have still maintained the essential
life values. And it’s much more important
than winning any match or tournament.
SI: The tennis world sometimes writes: “Nadal
might be starting to fade.” One journalist—
whom I won’t name, who might be sitting across
from you—wrote, “We are undeniably witnessing
an athlete in decline.” That was in 2016. Four
years later, you’re No. 1. It must give you such
satisfaction that you’re still on top.
RN: Yes, but let me explain. Negative comments
can be motivating for some people, like a
charge of energy. Not for me. It neither mo-
tivates me nor gets me down. I wouldn’t
criticize the journalist who said that. At the
time, maybe this was something that may
have happened. So I’ve always respected this
point of view.
VIVE LE ROI!
A 12th French
Open victory last
June helped lift
Nadal to No. 1 for
a third decade.
