A letter to Rafa, written by a 15 year old fan named Joely on Tumblr.
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You lost today, and it was painful.
You lost to someone who had never taken a set off of you before, who was in his first grand slam final, who nobody expected to win, but you lost.
But what I want to say is thank you. Thank you for everything.
Thank you for being such an amazing competitor and fighting to the very end no matter what.
Thank you for pushing the boundaries of your sport, playing to the absolute limit.
Thank you for showing such compassion and fire on the court, inspiring so many people to do the same.
Thank you for pulling off the most ridiculous shots that make me jump and scream and yell “VAMOS!” just as you do.
Thank you for being such a humble, kind person, and making me love you more every time you speak.
Thank you for having such humility, such respect for everyone, especially your next opponent even if they’re ranked so lowly compared to you and are most likely to get beaten by you.
Thank you for being, in my opinion, the greatest competitor to ever play the sport, for fighting for every single point and never ever giving up on anything.
Thank you for playing through the pain that must be excruciating, for never giving up, for never backing down.
Thank you for bringing such happiness into my life by playing your very best tennis and winning so many titles.
Thank you for being there when I’m sad, even though you don’t know you are, I can just watch one of your old matches and feel instantly better.
Thank you for showing that you’re human on the court, showing your passion or disgust at the shots you hit, bringing another level into your game.
Thank you for being so brutal and fearless on the court, putting everything on the line to win, but being such a gentle and shy person off the court, because these two things compliment each other perfectly.
Thank you for making my life that little bit better every day.
So thank you, Rafa, for everything.
Source: rafito-rogelio.tumblr.com
I cannot wait to watch tennis when it is on. Just to see the wonderful tennis player that really put their heart out on playing the game. Rafa is one of the best player out there. You know he is only human. Thank you Rafa for everything. I am one of your faithful fan. I have never watch tennis before but since I have seen Rafa play since he 17yrs old, I watch the game every time. I recorded it everyday so I wouldn’t miss any game.
One of these days, his fake injury will be a reality.
He is not humble, he mastered the art of pretending, Mr. Kiss ass to everyone. Too xxx!! Hahaha…please rafa learn to accept defeats.
your backhand is like a jr. Player. You excel in RUNNING ONLY, but your skill is somewhere between #30 to #50 ranking.
Hello Jix, while everyone is entitled to their opinion, bigotry is not welcome on this site. Please keep your comments free of slurs. Your post has been censored.
Yes Jix your bigotry is wrong your post deserved to be censored and it is true Rafa is # 1 he does not have to fake injuries, use common sense.
I think that his comments should be removed!! Can you not do that??
I don’t know what you think this players do that they have to pretend to be hurt. Rafa is the no.1 player in the world. He doesn’t have to pretend he was hurt.
Rafa, with our prayers for you, you will get better as soon as soonest to attend for more competitions
I feel the same way about Rafa as the writer of this beautiful letter to Rafa! I love tennis because of Rafa passion and fire on court.Stan was such a poor sportsman to argue with the umpire “saying Rafa always do that”” I was so hurt how heartless Stan was and I used to like Stan but no more. He was all about the trophy when the game was over then he was a hypocrite saying how he’s so sorry about Rafa and his back.Rafa is his friend blah blah blah! I was so sad my son went to buy the whole season VIP tickets for me to go to see Rafa August 4-August 10 2014 at the Rexall Center in Toronto.I’m praying god keep Rafa healthy so he can be in Toronto to play otherwise I’ll be so unhappy because my son saw me waking up every morning in Toronto at 3 am to look only at Rafa game and i have to go to work later in the day.I’ve been waiting so long to see Rafa in Toronto. Just love him so much and I’ll be cheering Rafa all the time win or lose I love him so much.He’s a true champion and so humble that’s the reason Rafa won all of our hearts.
Rafael Nadal, you are absolutely sensational! Vamos!
Je vous souhaite la guérison, nadal, ô toi des meilleurs joueurs de leur Alddin devenus courts de tennis compétents
Thanks Joely for such a beautiful letter.
Thanks Rafa
When in life achieving something looks difficult i watch ur matches i get charged up and full of energy. Rafa you are not just a tennis player you are a role model.
If anyone in life think anything is impossible they must watch Rafa play they will get courage to achieve their goal.
Get well soon tennis is too boring without you
Once again thank you Rafa!
Nasir
Sorry, my comment was directed at jix.
Yes, what a wonderful letter krazykiwi, I agree with everything. I never watched tennis until 5 years ago when I came upon Rafa – what an amazing toreador, what strength, what humility, what class. I live in Spain and follow all spanish sportsmen and women, but Rafa really is exceptional, in every way. Vamos
Fake injury. Couldn’t accept defeat, always has an alibili when losing.
Fucking gay nadal.
u must be a sick man to hate such a great player of this caliber.u must be a sissy,dumbhead.
Please take your hate and ignorance elsewhere.
Im worried about the state of your mental health…
Jix I don’t know how you can talk such crap, Rafa is the most Graceful and Humble Tennis player out there and always gives his opponent congrads. for their win when he loses, if Rafa had not been hurt he would have gotten to most of those passing shots he don fake his pain or give up if he is not hurt. he would have been going for those passing shots he don’t lose on purpose. myself and others have the common sense to know that so you talking that nonsense makes no sense. get real and get smart because you are talking like a person with no brains.
u hv played a great even though it makes me agreat pain when u lost it hope u will a french open u r a champion always take care ur health
I felt bad about your injury Rafa.Hoping and praying for your complete recovery!You’re more than a champion .
Once was called one dimensional player, Rafa shut them off! Once was called, he is only good on clay, Rafa shut them off! Once was called his injured and done, Rafa came back not just once but more than 3 times. is a great role model, a true champion, gladiator and a living legend. i can not ask for more….. he works so hard and still play with great passion. to top it all, he is really concern about the future of tennis and tennis players! we should be thankful we have a player like him in this era! men tennis is so boring without him. Don’t hate him because his Spaniard! Don’t hate him because his losing his hair! Don’t hate him because he has OCD! Don’t hate him because he has a better H2H against the top 4. Rafa rocks!!! =)
Like millions of Rafa’s fans, I’d say MUCHAS GRACIAS. You give us joy ~ win or loss. There is euphoria when we share your happiness of achievement not only for your team, your family, and your fans. There is also deflation when you are not well, and losing is just another downturn which you can recover. I learned to love tennis (a sport I never play) because of you, Rafa. Go with God always.