“Between Richard and me, it must be said that it’s a very old story! We were twelve years old when we first met, in Tarbes, in the quarter-finals of the Petits As (in January 1999, editor’s note). Everyone spoke of him as an incredible player, way above the rest. Playing a match against him was an exceptional event for the other young players. This meeting with him, in Tarbes, in front of an audience committed to his cause, was therefore a big challenge, undoubtedly the first of my career.”
Words signed Rafael Nadal, author of the preface to HAS against all odds, the autobiography of Richard Gasquet, written in collaboration with Franck Ramella. Almost 25 years after this first meeting won in three rounds by Gasquet, future winner of the tournament, the two men, 37 years old, are still working alongside each other.
We trained for 3 hours 15 minutes. Very good intensity.
Richard Gasquet, on his training with Rafael Nadal
Present at the Rafa Nadal Academy in Kuwait to prepare for the 2024 season, the nickname “Richie” trained with the Mallorcan on Sunday December 18, “for 3h15”. “Very good intensity”, detailed the Frenchman during an interview given to The Team. “It’s only been a fortnight since he picked up the points. Obviously, he is short of time. But he is already playing very well. We played three very good sets, I won two of them. He’s always the same in training. You see the anger, the concentration (smile). (…) I had a lot of fun being with him.”
One of the big goals of the man’s return to 22 Grand Slam titles after almost a year without competition is, as he explained, to be able to finish his career on the court, being competitive. A goal chased by, for example, Juan Martín del Potro and Roger Federer. Without really reaching it, being forced to choose the exit after their bodies had sounded the alarm.
“It’s great for tennis,” Gasquet added of the Balearic southpaw’s return. “We need him to come back, to choose when he stops. And that he still plays matches of which he has the secret, that he shows what makes him a tennis legend.”
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We need him (Rafael Nadal) to come back, to choose the moment when he will stop.
Richard Gasquet
Well prepared, in good physical shape, motivated – as he confided – and does not “[sentant] not at all overwhelmed by young people when [il] plays with them”, the native of Béziers showed himself confident in his abilities to have a great 2024 season. Which could be his last – he has confided this several times in the past, without anything being stopped -, as Rafael Nadal. 22 years after his first match on the main circuit, like Rafael Nadal, again.
“At the end of the day, Richard and I have this personal satisfaction, anchored deep within us, of having realized our childhood dream: to become professional tennis players and play on the greatest courts in the world,” wrote “ Rafa” for the preface to the Habs’ autobiography. “We did it. The rest is no longer ours.”
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2023-12-20 12:55:33
#Nadal #playing #Gasquet #trained #Spaniard
