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Nadal — the current Spanish delight

By Sanjay Rajan

CHENNAI JAN. 6. On the Tour, the players say he is the one to watch out for. And back home in Spain, people have already begun to speak of his future achievements almost as a matter of course. All this talk of him has come about after a sensational 2003 season in which he jumped from 235 in the rankings to 67, his maiden entry into the Top-100. And to think he is just 17!

The future indeed looks bright for the boy from Mallorca. Rafael Nadal — Rafa to friends — has drawn inspiration from Carlos Moya. "We both reside in Manacor. I get to hit the ball with Moya at times. He is both a friend and guide to me," said the left-handed Nadal.

Must have been a heady feeling to make the Top-100 at such an early age? "I worked very hard for it. I didn't play too well in the indoors, though, and need to play more of them."

Nadal also became the youngest player on debut since the 16-year-old Boris Becker in 1984 to reach the third round of Wimbledon. "It felt good, especially after coming back from a six-week break owing to injury."

Spaniards are known to be at home on clay and uncomfortable on grass. So what does he credit his impressive debut at The Championships to? "Well, I just played my natural game. I am equally comfortable on all surfaces," said the six-foot tall journeyman.

The elbow injury which happened when he was `monkeying around' at practice — tripping and falling while trying to jump over the net — forced Nadal to miss the French Open. It was the Grand Slam he was eagerly waiting for, especially after qualifying for his first Master Series tournament at Monte Carlo where he beat higher-ranked players like Karol Kucera and Albert Costa.

At the TMS Hamburg, in May, he beat none other than Moya. "I felt happy that I won the match, but it hurt too because Moya is a friend," Nadal said.

Nadal hails from a sporting family. His uncle, Toni, a tennis coach, introduced him to the game and remains his coach and mentor. His other uncle, Miguel, played soccer for FC Barcelona, Real Mallorca and the National team.

As a young boy, Nadal found it difficult to choose between tennis and soccer. "I played both for a while. Then came the point where I had to decide. Guess, I made the right choice."

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