Transcript of Rafael Nadal’s presser after the Zverev match.
THE MODERATOR: Questions, please.
Q. You looked very good tonight. How pleased were you with the way you played?
RAFAEL NADAL: Yeah, happy. No, I played a great match, I think. Difficult say something negative, because in general I saw after, on the video screen, like, 30 winners and just a few unforced errors.
Returning very well, I think. A lot of great passing shots. Not, you know, mistakes. Only thing, I am not sure about my percentage of serves. I think was not that good tonight, was the only thing. But for the rest, I think I played great.
Q. You must be pleased, particularly going into what will be a really tough match against Milos tomorrow.
RAFAEL NADAL: For sure. Yeah, he’s one of the toughest opponents on tour today, without a doubt. He’s the third in the world.
His serve is huge, and he improved a lot from the baseline, too. It’s a match that you cannot do mistakes if you want to really have any chance.
You need to be really focused with your serve and then try to play aggressive on the return. I gonna try to make it happen, knowing that it’s going to be extremely difficult match.
Q. You probably haven’t heard, but today an 18-year-old player has been charged with match fixing in a minor tournament in Victoria. As a senior player, particularly after last year’s episode at the Australian Open, does it bother you that things like that are still happening in the game?
RAFAEL NADAL: I didn’t know anything about that. I didn’t heard.
But, no, if he’s arrested is because we are doing the right job, you know. That’s the most important thing. At the same time is obviously negative, always in the first month of the season starts to happen. Talking stories about our sport always before the Australian Open, and that’s something, you know, I have been a lot of years on tour and happen almost every year. You get tired about this kind of stuff, but the most important thing is fight against these kind of things. And he’s young?
Q. 18. Yeah.
RAFAEL NADAL: That’s even the worst part.
Q. Do you hope that there can be a life ban for situations like that? Do you think tennis is doing enough to combat match fixing?
RAFAEL NADAL: I think — you know, I have, being honest, I have been on the tour for 12, 13 years, and I really don’t spend a lot of time in the lower categories of our events, you know, in challengers and in futures. I spent just months, so I cannot talk much about it.
But on the professional ATP World Tour, I can talk. I don’t know if this happened here, but for sure is not happening very often, no? If it happened, it has been just very few times, because I see every match people fights, you know, people don’t want to lose.
I don’t see matches that people give up or throw the match, you know. Maybe the lower tournaments maybe is another story, but I don’t want to talk about it, because I really don’t know much.
But I know in Spain it happened a couple of weeks ago that few people gets arrested, a group that dedicates to that. And it’s great that, you know, I think that the sport is doing the right things to fight against that and, you know, all the people that are not doing the things right, now they are in trouble.
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I think he started doing that at the french open last year for obvious reasons. When he did it there this year i remember the commentary team saying it was distasteful. He does look such an idiot when he does it. Its so cringeworthy!
Susie , we can only but hope , don’t think I could bear it if he wins especially the bit where he sends his love to all4 sides of the court ,imean please someone in his camp tell him not to do it , it’s so cringe worthy.😀😀
Oh maria – bad news re novak making that final. He will be determined to crush andy to reinforce that he will get back to no1. Lets hope andy has a good day and that novak will lose his arrogant cool on the day. Rafa will be ok – early days!
Oh it is a Murray / Djokovic final Frances, Nishikori is playing in Brisbane,Andy /Novak are playing Doha
Frances , as you say hopefully Novak won’t be in the final but if he is and he against Andy, I to hope he gets thrashed , he wants to be top dog and regrettably will get to be number one again but what I would say to him if I was Andy is HEY Novak have you been Knighted and don’t forget to call me sir Andy ( only joking) that’s not in Andy’s nature and I know he feels embarrassed about it. I did read somewhere that years ago the UK asked Novak to play for them but Novak said he declined as he wanted to be loyal to his own country ( so loyal he moved to Monte Carlo))
I agree most heartily djokovic is one big headed bore come on Andy and crush him if he gets to the final which I hope and pray he doesn’t I hopeKei blasts him off the courrt
Rafa your friend Verdasco played great today and nearly won , but it’s very hard to play when your being suffocated by Novak’s giant ego. Good luck Rafa at the AO come out fighting.
Rafa can’t believe your out of the tournament , when the insufferable Djokovic was one point away from being knocked out of Doha ,i only hope Verdasco can still do it.The way he acts on court makes me want to throw up if only he had an ounce of your character he might just be bearable.