Skip to main content

Uncle Toni

Toni Nadal: "I was worried that fame and money would affect Rafael´s career" via http://www.elmundo.es/vida-sana/bienestar/2016/03/21/56ebf6c946163f4b448b458c.html
 
"When we started to travel, Rafael was so little and my responsibility went b)eyond tennis but as he grew older, our familiar relationship took second place.
 
"During a tournament, in San Juan de Luz (France), Rafael was 16 and he went to have dinner with my friend. The following day he said to me that they ate mariscada (shellfish stew) and I replied that he was not old enough to have it and that the correct thing was to eat an hamburger. He had already signed important enough contracts with sports brands and he could afford it. I was worried that fame and money would affect his career and because of this I wanted him to behave like a normal boy."
 
Toni has three sons none of whom are not jealous of their cousin: "My sons are grateful to their cousin. Thanks to him, they have had the opportunity to go to US Open, Australia and Wimbledon, among other tournaments. For sure at the beginning I travelled a lot but now I alternate with Francis Roig and stay away from home for only 180 days. There were years where I stayed more time away from home. The most important thing is to have the luck to do what I like," said Toni, who"s accompanied Rafa in all tournaments in the last seven months.
 
What aspect of Rafa"s career has Toni helped develop the most? "As a coach, I consider character more important than improving technique. I think people who succeed in life are the ones who have perseverance. And it"s what I wanted to inculcate in Rafa from the beginning. My goal was to teach him to be always willing to face adversity and overcome it.
 
"I always pushed Rafa to try his best even in the worst conditions. I coached my nephew for tennis, but I would have done the same if I had to prepare him for any activity in life."

What"s Toni"s share in Rafa"s wins and losses: "When he usually won they said that I was a good coach. Now that he does not do so well, I"m the reason why Rafa loses (laughs). It"s that I believe to be having the luck to coach a good player."
 
If you teach a kid how to play forehand, can you teach the same kid to have will too? "For sure. I have always believed that a big problem of the current education system is that you teach kids things you can find on Google and you forget what"s fundamental: teaching themhow to work on their emotional intelligence and to dominate their will. That"s what I tried to do with Rafa. Being human means to being set in one"s ways. If you teach them to work every day without being demoralized or without inventing excuses, you end up considering this as something normal in the life."
 
Finding an excuse is the most simple thing: " I prefer to accept errors because if you get used to justifying your errors, you restrict your personal growth."
 
One of his most preferred phrases is "Withstand, Rafa." Why? "You can train everything, mind and body. Since he was very little, Rafael had a very difficult mental predisposition to improve, and he worked on resistence." Have they ever argued in public without getting noticed? "I remember only once in Madrid. Rafael was going through a complicated period. The match was going well but Rafa was starting to get confused and I told him: "Be careful now." He was like "Do not tell me anything because you make me get tense." At that moment I turned around, crossed my arms and didn"t return to follow him. In the locker room, he understood I was nervous and he believed my reaction was exaggerated. I replied that I had told him what I believed too, and if he did not like that I supported him he did not have to be disrespectful. Probably I did exaggerate but If I had allowed it, then anything could have happened. I have seen coaches who, after an argument, have abandoned the court and taken a fight home. To me, if it happened, I would be ashamed for one week."
 
Asked if Rafa will be a happy man once he will end his career, Toni said: "He will be a totally happy person because he likes so many things: he likes playing golf, going fishing, staying with friends and his family. His life is not only about tennis."
Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Pengalaman Minggu Pertama Persekolahan

Selamat kembali ke sekolah adik-adik/anak-anak semua! Hari ini merupakan hari pertama dan minggu pertama persekolahan  bagi sesi tahun 2016. Jadi Aida nak ambil kesempatan bercerita tentang pengalaman minggu pertama persekolahan. Tapi bukan pengalaman  Tahun 1, cerita ini tentang pengalaman minggu pertama persekolahan di Tingkatan 4.Ehhh kenapa Tingkatan 4? Mesti ada yang tertanya-Tanya kan? Jawapannya mudah. Aida berpindah ke sekolah baru masa di Tingkatan 4. Pindah jauh ke Borneo kerana mengikut abah yang bertukar ke Sabah. Kami berpindah ke Kota Kinabalu pada penguhujung tahun. Sekolah yang dipilih oleh abah untuk Aida ialah Maktab Sabah @ Sabah College, antara sekolah ternama di Sabah. Pada masa itu kami tinggal di Putatan. Jarak antara Putatan dengan Sekolah Maktab Sabah adalah lebih kurang setengah jam perjalanan menaiki bas. Aida ke sekolah menaiki bas.  Maktab Sabah. Photo credit to Wikipedia.  Ok kita berba...
Post a Comment
Read more

Buah Hati Pengarang Jantung

Inilah buah hati abah aku skarang ni. Merekalah penghibur hati abah sejak mak pergi. Merekalah racun merekalah penawar. Semoga semuanya menjadi anak yang soleh dan cucu yang sentiasa mengingati atok dan nenek walaupun nenek dah pergi meinggalkan mereka.   Wan, Jiji & Ayoi (Anak2 abang aku) Adam (Anak Adik Perempuan Aku-Ain) Qisya (Anak Adik Lelaki Aku, A'a. Walaupun Qisya bukan anak betul adik aku tapi dia telah menjadi sebahagian daripada keluarga kami. Dan kami sayangkan dia.)
6 comments
Read more

Hospis Malaysia

Photo credit to http://www.hospismalaysia.org Mungkin ramai diantara kita yang tak tau apa itu Hospis Malaysia. Aku tak pelik kalau anda tak tau sebab dulu aku pun tak tau dan tak pernah dengar tentang Hospis Malaysia ni.Aku mula 'kenal' Hospis Malaysia ni bila mak aku mula menghadapi gangguan pernafasan. Ya aku tau mak aku dah meninggal dunia beberapa bulan lepas tapi maafkan aku kerana aku masih belum mampu menyebut arwah mak, Aku lebih selesa menyebut mak sahaja. Kerana mak sentiasa hidup dalam hati aku :-'(   Ok berbalik cerita tentang Hospis Malaysia tadi. Sebenarnya aku sekeluarga diperkenalkan dengan Hospis Malaysia ini oleh doktor dan jururawat yang merawat mak di Hospital Luala Lumpur. Memandangkan mak kerap mengalami gangguan pernafasan dan menghadapi sedikit masalah untuk banyak bergerak  maka mereka mencadangkan supaya mak dibekalkan dengan oxygen dan juga wheelchair. Pada awalnya kami menjangkakan kami perlu membeli peralatan tersebut t...
8 comments
Read more