You didn’t need especially fine antennae on the eve of the Davis Cup Final of 2004 to spot the disgruntlement in the faces of Juan Carlos Ferrero and Tommy Robredo, denied their places in history by the eighteen-year-old upstart Nadal. It was obvious to anybody watching the team press conference the night before the first […]

Asing up was not an option. Two sets to love up and one set away Efrom winning Wimbledon, people watching might have felt I was within easy reach of my life’s dream. But I intended to allow no such thoughts into my head. I would take each point as it came, in isolation. I’d forget […]

Sebastián Nadal came in for much teasing from his family over the jacket he wore to watch his son play Federer in the 2008 Wimbledon final. It wasn’t his jacket, he complained; he didn’t have one before the match began, he asked Benito Pérez, his son’s press chief, to see if he could come up […]

Ederer Served and won the first game of the second set without Flosing a point. Had there been the slightest suggestion of complacency in some remote corner of my head after winning the first set, this killed it. He pounded down four good serves with that deceptively easy action of his, and I had no […]

Ask Toni Nadal what his last words were to his nephew before he left the Wimbledon locker room at the start of the 2008 final and he’ll tell you: “I told him to battle to the end and endure.” Ask him why Rafa has made it to the top of world tennis and he’ll reply: […]

He First Point is always important, more so in a Wimbledon final. I’d Tfelt good, I’d had those good sensations all morning; now I had to prove it to myself on court. Federer got in a good first serve wide to my backhand. I clawed the return back, better than he expected, deeper. He was […]

The Rafa Nadal the world saw as he stormed onto the Centre Court lawn for the start of the 2008 Wimbledon final was a warrior, eyes glazed in murderous concentration, clutching his racket like a Viking his axe. A glance at Federer revealed a striking contrast in styles: the younger player in sleeveless shirt and […]

He Silence, that’s what strikes you when you play on Wimbledon’s TCentre Court. You bounce the ball soundlessly up and down on the soft turf; you toss it up to serve; you hit it and you hear the echo of your own shot. And of every shot after that. Clack, clack; clack, clack. The trimmed […]

The Family Rafael Nadal: tennis player Sebastián Nadal: his father Ana María Parera: his mother Maribel Nadal: his sister Toni Nadal: his uncle and coach Rafael Nadal: his uncle Miguel Ángel Nadal: his uncle, and former professional football player Marilén Nadal: his aunt and godmother Don Rafael Nadal: his paternal grandfather Pedro Parera: his maternal […]

Cast of Characters CHAPTER 1 — THE SILENCE OF THE CENTRE COURT “Clark Kent and Superman” CHAPTER 2 — THE DYNAMIC DUO Uncle Toni CHAPTER 3 — THE FOOTBALL STAR THAT NEVER WAS The Clan CHAPTER 4 — HUMMINGBIRD Highly Strung Photo Section 1 CHAPTER 5 — FEAR OF WINNING Mallorcans CHAPTER 6 — “AN […]