The final tournament of the Davis Cup to be played in Malaga started in a tear-jerking atmosphere, writes Atte Husu.
Atte Husuurheilhu reporter
MALAGA. Yes, it can!
These three words rang out again and again in Malaga’s tennis sanctuary on Tuesday, when the Spanish tennis star Rafael Nadal played the Dutch in the opening match of the Davis Cup finals Botic van de Zandschulpia against.
Loosely translated, the Spanish shouted to their national hero that anything is possible.
Nadal is not only one of the most successful but also the most loved figures in the history of Spanish sports, which is based on his humble and humane personality.
Off the courts, Nadal does not enjoy being the center of attention.
When his home island of Mallorca suffered severe flood damage in 2018, Nadal was shoveling mud like the rest of the nation. So this is not a millionaire who isolates himself in his own bubble (Nadal’s assets are estimated to be more than 500 million euros).
So it’s no wonder that Nadal has found his way into the hearts of the people.
Overflowing love
Nadal, 38, has been cheered on countless times by passionate souls, but early Tuesday evening at the Palacio de Deportes José María Martín Carpena in Malaga’s tennis sanctuary, Takuu also left an impression on the champion who has seen it all.
Yes, in addition to that fall, the audience took turns blasting Rafa and España as much as they could from their vocal cords.
The crowd seemed to carry Nadal, who was far from his best and practically hung along in the match. Intermittent moments of excitement were always followed by easy mistakes that Nadal made, especially in critical parts of the game. Van de Zandschulp was ahead in all relevant metrics of the game.
When the Dutchman broke Nadal’s serve at the start of the second set and held his own, some of the Spanish supporters started to despair. This was reflected in Van de Zandschulp being pressured in an unsportsmanlike manner. Unfortunately, many in the crowd loudly celebrated the Dutchman’s double faults – even when he missed his first pass.
As a national team tournament, the Davis Cup is a unique event. In that case, the referee often forgives the crowd’s shouting and other kinds of bad behavior in the serving situation, which would be unheard of in ordinary ATP tournaments, let alone in the crown jewel of the professional tour, the Grand Slam tournament.
The referee in the match between Nadal and Van de Zandschulp did not do enough to calm the crowd in time. That, in turn, led to the fact that an unfortunate number of Dutch fans responded to the Spaniards’ offense by psyching Nadal out.
After more than ten minutes of bickering, Nadal made it clear with his gestures that the audience must calm down and preserve the dignity of the occasion.
After that, Nadal broke Van de Zandschulp’s pass and excited the almost ten thousand audience. However, the lead of two service breaks was too much, and the Dutchman won the match 6–4, 6–4.
After the handshakes, Nadal quickly went to the t-point of the serving box, took note of the standing crowd and left the court.
Was there a career in it?
At the time of writing, Spain still have a chance to qualify for Friday’s semifinal.
The number one topic of discussion in the last few days of the Davis Cup has been Nadal’s playing condition, as almost four months had passed since the 22-time Grand Slam winner’s last competitive game when he arrived in Malaga.
In the hallways, Nadal was talked about as a possible alternative to the doubles. A day before the h-moment, journalists following Nadal’s career told, citing their sources, that there are still question marks surrounding the star’s playing condition.
Ferrer’s decision to choose Nadal as Spain’s opener for the Dutch match surprised many industry experts.
Tuesday’s performance gave no signs that would favor Nadal’s selection later in the tournament, if Spain clears its way there.
This was also admitted by Nadal himself at the press conference after the match.
If Spain plays in the finals of the Davis Cup before competitive sports, Tuesday night was most likely the lesson of one of the all-time tennis legends, where Nadal and the audience left everything on the court.