Book Review: Rafa - My Story

The fighter, the athlete and the guy who, people say, never gives up. ‘Rafa – My Story’ recounts the story of Rafael Nadal, one of the greatest tennis players that this generation has seen and possibly the greatest ever player on clay, giving an insight into his life. The autobiography, written along with John Carlin is a great read, especially for some who are not as naturally gifted and aspire to be a tennis player. This makes a great read even if you are a coach who is in the process of grooming youngsters. Why?

Contrary to what people may expect, Rafa’s childhood on the tennis court has not been rosy at all. He outlines in this book how tough his Uncle and coach (Toni) used to be on him and how his ways would not go down well with Rafa himself. But his love for tennis would make him carry on and despite these odds, make him continue to fight – not only to get better, but against his Uncle whom he would believe was being unfair to him. He outlines instances of his Uncle’s extreme ways but all with the grand objective of making Rafa endure all the pain in the world, so that he is prepared for the challenges to come, so that he is not flustered with the failures that life and sport bring to the table. Toni, basically, chiseled Rafa’s brain into becoming tough, tough through his extreme ways. Rafa cites an example of how once, when he was a young child participating in a tournament, forgot his water bottle for a match and his uncle could have gone and got him some water but chose not to – because he wanted Rafa to become responsible and wanted him to endure the pain which was inflicted – that was Toni Nadal, the Uncle and coach!

Rafa outlines his family background in detail but does not make reading boring and talks about his childhood in-depth. He outlines how important his upbringing has been and how the value system practiced in his house has helped him a great deal (and is visible to all fans by his on-court demeanor). He talks about how his family would live together (or in the vicinity) and had very strong values which have never made him throw the racket on-court in frustration (as that would mean disrespecting the game and the equipment) and how he has respected all umpires, linesmen and ball kids.

“I build a wall around myself when I play, but my family is the cement that holds the wall together”

He goes on to cite further instances to outline how Toni was always focused on keeping young Rafa glued to the ground and never let success (even victories) go to his head.

Rafa provides insights into himself, like how much he hates losing (any match) and how he reacted to a loss once, while returning home with his Father, which actually gave his father an idea on how mature this young kid can be at such a young age, and this instance changed the way his Father looked at him forever. He lives up to his nice guy image and he only has praises for his opponents, especially his arch-rival, Federer and this is again testimony to the values he has been brought up with and this aspect has been highlighted quite a bit in the book.

The base of the book starts off with details about his Wimbledon final against Federer in 2008 and how badly he wanted this one and that’s when he outlines his pre-match rituals in fair detail. He gives a unique insight into his thought-process, which almost seems to be taken from a soldier who is all set for a war. Candidly (and modestly), he admits that he is not as naturally gifted like Federer and gives utmost credit to his coach, Toni, for having the vision to see Rafa become mentally stronger than his opponents, with the main modus-operandi of beating them by sheer psychological toughness, mental calmness and physical strength exhibited by way of this strategy.

“If I have to wait for the rally to stretch to ten shots or twelve or fifteen to bide my chance to hit a winner, I’ll wait. There are moments when you have a chance to go for a winning drive, but you have a 70 percent chance of succeeding; you wait five shots more and your odds will have improved to 85 percent. So be alert, be patient, don’t be rash”

The above is very evident for any Rafa fan in just the way he grinds his opponents and pushes them into submission through a shot which the opponent had to go for just to avoid any more exertion.

If you are a coach, you can read this book as Toni Nadal and take a leaf out of it, if you believe in his approach which can be summarized by this quote:

“Cruel to be kind, as Toni saw it, he would play games with Rafa in which the winner was the first to twenty points. He would allow the excited child to get to nineteen, and then he’d raise his game, beating him to the post, ruining his nephew’s day just as he was beginning to savor the thrill of an unlikely little victory. The blows to morale and the relentlessly harsh discipline to which he submitted Rafa all had a grand strategic purpose: teaching him to endure”

Or if you are an aspiring tennis player, then there are many quotes which you can stick on your wall (like the outlined earlier and this next one) which will be an inspiration.

“You have to cage yourself in protective armor, turn yourself into a bloodless warrior. It’s a kind of self-hypnosis, a game you play, with deadly seriousness, to disguise your own weaknesses from yourself, as well as from your rival”

Rafa outlines how Toni and the family share a special bond and sees this as a mutually rewarding relationship between his Father and Toni. Monetarily, this is what he has to say:

“One thing would not have happened without the other. Toni has never received any money from me or from anyone in the family for the lifelong attention he’s dedicated to me, but he’s been able to do it because he owns half of my father’s business, and takes half the profits, without doing any of the work. It’s been a fair exchange because I would never have had anything like the same hours of coaching from Toni if my father had not worked with such purpose all his life”

The book outlines plenty of such insights into the ‘warrior-Rafa’ that we see on court today and talks about how his trainer Joan Forcades had special training regimes to suit tennis and his style of playing the game and his ‘lucky’ Davis Cup success in 2004

He talks about the tough times in his life quite openly, including his Parents’ split and his brief spat with his coach Toni and what the factors were behind it, and being a closely-knit family, how it affected him (plus his game) and his sister.

Overall, a very compelling and interesting read, and worth all the money. So, as he would say, Vamos Vamos! (Come on, come on!) and get a copy of it!