Andrey Rublev scatters Rafael Nadal Rosen: "The best athlete in history"
After his victory at the ATP 500 event in St. Petersburg, Andrey Rublev wants to strike at even bigger tournaments in the future. The Russian draws the main motivation for this from the performances by RafaelNadal .
by Nikolaus Fink
last edit: Oct 20, 2020, 09:39 am
Actually, Andrey Rublev would have had enough reasons to really enjoy this success after his success at the home tournament in St. Petersburg. But instead of a big celebration, which is admittedly a bit difficult to pull off during a pandemic, the young Russian focused immediately on the upcoming tasks.
"The most important thing for me is to keep working. There are still a lot of things that I have to improve," said the 22-year-old following his sixth tournament win . These words, they remind a little of the man who recently clinched his 13th title at the French Open and, thanks to major triumph number 20, caught up with Roger Federer: Rafael Nadal.
Rublev impressed with Nadal's mental strength
It is no coincidence that Rublev's statements coincide with those of the Spaniard. In addition to Marat Safin, the Mallorcan is one of the two models of the world ranking night. So it's no wonder that the man from Moscow spoke highly of the new French Open champion: "I can't explain how he does it. I'm not just talking about the Grand Slams. I don't know how it is possible to be so mentally strong throughout your life and your entire career. "
This mental strength over the entire career also distinguishes Nadal from Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic: "They had moments in their careers when their heads weren't in a good mood and they let themselves down a little emotionally during the matches. Rafa is the only one Player of the story who at the end of the day always finds a way to win, whether he's feeling good or bad. "
"And if he doesn't win, he loses in three sets after three hours. If it happens in a Grand Slam tournament, then after five hours and against a really good player," the 22-year-old continued. Rublev himself also wanted to transfer this irrepressible will to win into his game.
Especially during bad phases, the Russian wants to draw motivation from Nadal's attitude: "If you take other athletes, they can have a bad day and still win because they have a good team. In tennis it is very difficult to have a really bad day Get caught and still compete and win as normal. He's done that throughout his career. For me, outside of tennis, he's the best athlete in history. "
ATP finals as a big highlight?
This year, however, Rublev could win another title that Rafael Nadal has not yet been able to claim in his career. The Russian is well on the way to the ATP Finals and wants to collect more important points in the fight for the year-end finals in Vienna next week.
But regardless of whether he qualifies for the unofficial tennis world championship or not, Rublev does not see himself at the end of the flagpole: "I think I have the opportunity to be better next year." Another sentence that reminds of his great idol.