I would place James Milner in this
category too, another sportsman in
the news this week having signed a
contract extension with Liverpool.
Milner may not have the stellar talent
of Nadal but he has made the most of
his potential through hard work,
sacrifice and solid dependability. He
has the eighth-most assists in Premier
League history and in the 2017-18
Champions League made nine in a
single campaign, beating the record at
the time of eight. Like Nadal, Milner
is 36 years of age. And like Nadal, he
is the last person to be seen in the
roped-off sections of nightclubs or
gracing the pages of gossip columns.Matthew Syedye d
I
have had the pleasure of
watching Rafael Nadal on dozens
of occasions but when I reflect on
this great champion, I do not
initially think of his famous
defeat of Roger Federer at Wimbledon
in 2008, or of Novak Djokovic in the
US Open final of 2010, or even of
Casper Ruud in Paris on Sunday, to
claim his 22nd grand-slam title.
Instead the Nadal moment that
always springs to mind is one from
2013, when the Spaniard was
subdued in the first round on the
grass of SW19 by a rank outsider
from Belgium, Steve Darcis. I
noticed the growing discomfort
in Nadal as a knee injury
started to deteriorate. It was a
contest in which Darcis
played well but where
distress to his opponent
was enough to offer a
crucial edge.
It was the press
conference afterwards,
though, that has always
stayed with me. Nadal, you see,
was pressed to talk about his
injury but studiously refused to
do so, fearing it would
overshadow the triumph of his
conqueror. “It is not the right
day [to talk about it],” he said. “I
tried my best out there in every
moment. The only thing that I
can say today is to congratulateSport
Milner and Rafa
oases of sanity
in world of egos
Steve Darcis. He played a fantastic
match. Everything that I will say
about my knee is an excuse, and I
don’t like to put forward any excuse
when I’m losing a match like I lost
today. He deserves not one excuse.”
I mention this because if you want
to understand the character of Nadal,
it isn’t enough to note his dedication,
warrior spirit and muscular intensity.
You also have to note his decency.
This is a champion who invariably
conducts himself with courtesy and
humility, on and off the court — a
point that shone through again
during his post-match interview on
Sunday. I once saw him walking to a
practice court at Wimbledon when a
youngster slipped badly while seeking
an autograph. He stayed with the
child until medical help arrived.
And I can’t help thinking that
these character traits have served
Nadal well as a sportsman. This is
a player who cooks for himself
and his family at grand-slam
events, who goes to the
supermarket to buy
ingredients, and who
remains grounded by
surrounding himself
with trusted friends.
He studiously avoids
getting sucked into
controversies and spats,
and rejects the superficial
temptations of what has come
to be called celebrity culture.
And isn’t this one reason why,
despite a series of physical
injuries, he has sustained the
mental equilibrium to stay at
the top?Indeed he hardly ever gives
interviews at all.
Both men are sometimes described
as dull but doesn’t this show just how
off-kilter our culture has gone? I once
heard a PR expert saying that Nadal
should do more to elevate his “brand”,
but this is the point: neither Nadal
nor Milner is remotely interested in
becoming a brand, and therefore they
are incorruptible.
Milner has embraced the “Boring
James Milner” Twitter parody
account, which lampoons him as the
kind of guy who likes staying home to
do the ironing. Before leaving for a
Champions League match a couple ofseasons ago, he posted a photo of a
suitcase with a tin of Yorkshire Tea.
“Packing almost complete,” he wrote.
“I just need to dig out my Italian
phrasebook and hot water bottle.”
Both married childhood
sweethearts, drink precious little
alcohol (Milner is teetotal), and are
quick to pay tribute to the sacrifices of
others. They are also committed to
giving back. Milner’s foundation
supports Help for Heroes and the
NSPCC, as well as raising money to
fight blood cancer, a cause that
Milner has championed since Stiliyan
Petrov, a former team-mate at Aston
Villa, had leukaemia diagnosed in- Nadal’s foundation, now in its
11th year, has used sport to help
thousands of children — the
philosophy is to help them “improve
as players and people”.
Perhaps it goes without saying that
you can trace their characters to
their early lives and, in particular,
parents who emphasised old-
fashioned virtues such as duty and
thrift.
There’s a terrific line in Milner’s
book, Ask a Footballer, where he talks
about childhood heroes such as Lee
Bowyer. “I had a Lee Bowyer [Leeds
United] shirt,” he writes. “I liked
Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink too, but I
never had his shirt. You had to pay by
the letter in those days, so maybe
that’s why my dad, a proper Yorkshire
fella, steered me away from it.”
In a world that has become
addicted to controversy, social media
storms and culture wars, such people
are like oases of sanity. Our culture
has become dangerously preoccupied
with plastic celebrities and drug-
fuelled narcissists, people who break
rules and taboos, and who spend time
sucking attention into the dark orbit
of their own egos. I know it is a
forlorn hope, but wouldn’t it be better
to reflect a little more on role models
like Nadal and Milner?
In the closing lines of Milner’s
book, he reflects upon life, and I
suspect Nadal would nod along
vigorously with his sentiments: “If
you’re lucky enough to be born with
the opportunity to do something that
others would love to be able to do,
then I think you have a duty to do
everything you can to make the most
of that opportunity. If you can then
take the opportunity to try to help
other people who aren’t so fortunate,
then that’s perfect.”
Milner maximises his talent
through graft and sacrificeNadal shows concern for Zverev, who tore ankle ligaments during their semi-finalCLIVE BRUNSKILL/GETTY IMAGESthe times | Wednesday June 8 2022 57