[ad_1]
For the 16th time, Nadal has qualified for a season finale. He has never won it and his chances are not very good in 2020 either.
He is not a man of indoor tournaments: Rafael Nadal prefers to play on clay or have fun on the golf courses, like at the Balearic Golf Championships at the end of October.
Photo: Cristian Trujillo (Getty Images)
Rafael Nadal yawns as he sits in the interview room. It’s dark in the O2 arena and empty because journalists are sitting in front of screens somewhere in the world. Audiences will also be absent from the gigantic 17,000-seat stadium when the final 12th and final season takes place on the Thames in London’s Greenwich district on Sunday. Next year he will move to Turin.
“It is sad and not fair that we have to play here without a spectator when we say goodbye,” admits Nadal. Unlike other years, when players lived in the city center and traveled to and from the Thames by boat, the corona pandemic has also changed the life situation. Players are now staying at a hotel next door. “Even though it is only 200 meters, we cannot walk there,” Nadal laments.
But no, you don’t want to complain. “We are lucky to even be able to practice our sport. We have to be grateful for that. “Even if he praises the end of the London season, he welcomes the measure.” It was great here, the stadium was great, the organization was excellent. But tennis has to move, the The event has to travel the world and bring our sport closer to the people “.
The ATP final was certainly a success story for London, but less so for Nadal. As in his first two season finals in China, where he failed in the semi-finals against Roger Federer, here he could never win either. He was in the final twice, in 2010 he was defeated by Federer and three years later by Djokovic. The ATP final, previously also called the Masters or ATP World Championship, is the last great gap in Nadals Palmarès, which now includes 20 Grand Slam trophies.
These rubbers are not ideal for me. But there are no excuses. “
But his bad luck was that he could never deny it on clay. When one reporter pointed out that only two of his 86 indoor tournaments were victories, he said: “Those numbers are there and there are no excuses. I also played less indoor tournaments, but it is true that these tires are not ideal for me, even though I have improved them. ”
The Mallorcan is not for the dark season, nor for indoor tournaments, and by the end of the season he was often no longer fit or convalescent anyway. Canceling tournaments is not very difficult for him. He has already missed one of the season finals six times and retired again after one game. In nine participations so far he has had 18 wins but also 14 losses. Federer is the record winner in this tournament with six titles and 57 individual victories.
Start with the end of last year
Given the fact that the Basel bidder is missing and Djokovic has recently shown little motivation, Nadal may well have outside chances for the title. “That’s just speculation,” he said goodbye. “But at least I played four games at Paris-Bercy and I should be reasonably well prepared.” However, with Andrei Rublew, he will face a very tough opponent early on on Sunday night. In addition to the Russian, US Open winner Dominic Thiem and defending champion Stefanos Tsitsipas also belong to their group of four. The two finalists from last year will meet on Sunday in the opening match.
