What does Rafael Nadal tell you?
That he regrets not having recovered from his injury and not being able to play for this trophy.
Trophy that confronted them.
Yes, Rafa and I played four finals in 2008, 2009, 2011 and 2012.
Who beat?
Rafael Nadal all four.
Do they comment on this?
No, no, we never reminded ourselves.
Does it hurt you not to have won any?
I'm a little sad.
What do you talk to each other?
In his Mallorcan, he; in my Valencian, me. It was hard for me to understand him at first.
And today you direct this Trophy.
For the fourth year, since 2020: an honor!
What is your mission?
Let the best tennis players in the world come and play here.
And does he get it?
Of the first fifteen players in the world, eight come. Of the first thirty tennis players, eighteen. Of the first hundred, more than half ask to be here.
A success: I congratulate you!
Merit of the city of Barcelona and the Real Club de Tenis Barcelona, this mythical club for all tennis players in the world.
As of today, this club hosts the Conde de Godó Trophy for the 70th consecutive year!
As a child my parents brought me, I was a ball boy, I love him! And I saw Agassi, Lendl, Stich, Krajicek, Costa, Muster play...
List the stars of this 70th edition.
Alcaraz, Tsitsipás, Ruud, Sinner, Tiafoe, Khachanov, Norrie... The best are coming, they will give us much joy!
You will have some merit.
I have met many tennis players in my 19 years as a professional tennis player, I lasted until I was 37 years old... and I know how they are.
How did you start in tennis?
At the age of seven I played for the Xàbia club, to emulate my older brother. And I continued, always supported by my parents.
What did they do?
My father was an accountant; my mother, teacher
What made you a good tennis player?
Genetics and character. Tennis is repeating, it requires perseverance: day-to-day talent.
What do you admire most about Rafa Nadal?
That being such a supernatural tennis player is at the same time such a natural person.
What about Carlos Alcaraz?
His precocity and his charisma: he managed to reach number one at a very young age, he is a benchmark.
Do you miss your tennis days?
I commanded more, but today I learn a lot.
Did he command more being a tennis player?
Yes, the tennis player is the one who rules in a tournament.
With whims included?
One asked me to pick him up in Monte Carlo with a helicopter; another, a better hotel; another, different food; another, the center court; another, play at a certain time...
Being a tennis player, do you mess up a lot?
I broke a lot of rackets. That's wrong. Today I would not, of course, or other things.
What other things?
I spoke badly to my coach, I got mad at a track judge...
What would you say to a runaway tennis player?
That I understand him... But that he will learn.
His weakness was...
The serve.
And in life?
The impulsivity.
His strong point was...
The rest. And fight every ball always.
What was the best game played in your entire career?
The 2012 Davis Cup final in Prague. We lost to the Czechs. But we play at a very high level! A colossal match.
Did they have a sports psychologist?
I wish I had had it from a young age!
Any psychological advice that you have not forgotten?
I will tell you one that a friend of mine repeats to me: "It is always cheaper to say 'no' than to say 'yes'".
Has it been hard for you to say “no”?
Quite a bit, but I've been learning.
What does your wife say to all this?
She met me as a tennis player and has lived with me all the resignations that this implies. Despite everything, today she still wants to be by my side. I'm lucky! Because she might not have been like that...and she would understand him too.
If you weren't a tennis player, what would you have been?
I haven't even considered it. Now I teach at a tennis academy. This usually happens to many tennis players.
Who will be the winner of this brand new 70th Conde de Godó Tennis Trophy?
I am captain of the Spanish team for the Davis Cup: I would like to see a Spanish tennis player win. I know them and they deserve it.
Will tennis ever die?
Never, because we will be adapting tennis to the taste of young people so that it is faster and more spectacular.
