Iga Swiatek was one of the many fans to be disheartened after Rafael Nadal suffered a tough loss to Novak Djokovic in the semifinal of the French Open 2021. Rafa’s loss resulted in the Polish star shedding tears. But to her surprise, the King of Clay had a calm demeanor despite being unable to clinch a fifth consecutive title at Roland Garros.
She got a chance to meet Nadal again recently since the Billie Jean King Cup Finals and the Davis Cup Finals are being held at the same arena in Malaga, Spain. With Rafa reaching the arena a few days before the tournament kickstarted, numerous WTA stars interacted with the 22-time Grand Slam winner and watched him train up close.
In an interview with Tennis Channel, Swiatek was asked to disclose some iconic moments from her interactions with the Mallorca native. The former World No.1 recollected one particular exchange with Nadal from more than three years ago.
Despite losing the semifinal, Iga revealed that Rafa appeared to be at peace with the outcome of the encounter.
“I saw him somewhere in the hotel and I told him that I even cried when he lost. He was so calm and he said, ‘That’s just tennis and life goes on and there are gonna be different goals in the future.’
“So I was like, ‘Wow, this person really knows how to deal with losing, even your favourite tournament.’ I realised that off the court you also need to learn on how to deal with stuff to be a better player on the court,” Swiatek added.
Iga Swiatek details some of her personal time with Rafael Nadal, including a special conversation she had with The King following one of his toughest losses + just how powerful his ball is from a technical perspective. ️ pic.twitter.com/V1Kazpv3Ct
— Tennis Channel (@TennisChannel) November 18, 2024
Swiatek’s compliments for her idol didn’t stop there. The Polish star also shed light on the “birthday gift” Rafa gave her and the discoveries she made about the ATP legend during the same incident.
Swiatek has practiced with Nadal at Roland Garros
Few people can boast a more memorable first encounter with their idol than Iga Swiatek. She met Nadal for the first time during that French Open. The fact that she was able to hit a few rallies with her role model made her birthday even more special. During this exchange, the youngster was also impressed by Rafa’s humility.
“So I remember we practiced in Roland Garros once. That was actually like a gift for my birthday. So we hit for like 15 minutes and I realised that he’s really down to earth and humble. That was the first time I talked to him so it was special,” Swiatek said.
Swiatek was blessed to have another conversation with Nadal moments before her latest matchup against Spain’s Paula Badosa. With the two team events – the BJK Cup and the Davis Cup – overlapping with each other, Swiatek will have extra motivation to potentially win the tournament in front of her idol.
However, the journey to lift the silverware is still very difficult for Poland, as they need to get the better of Italy in the semifinal and one of Great Britain/Slovakia in the final.
