"If you do not have humility, it's difficult to continue on the right path" - says Rafael Nadal

Rafael Nadal achieved many things in his tennis career but he never allowed that to change his humble personality.

The Spaniard always speaks about staying in the present moment and thinking too far ahead. He never takes things for granted either and that's just the way Nadal is. He's always stayed quite humble even after so many successes and that might actually be the key to his success.

Nadal sat down with Eurosport after his Wimbledon journey to talk about the year he has had and just what allows him to have such a year at a fairly advanced tennis age. He said:

"In team sports, you have a coach who is the club. Hire a coach and the player is paid too. But the coach is the boss. In our sport, I am the one who pays the coach, the physical trainer, the physical therapist. In the end, you are the boss."

He then continued:

"If you don't make all those people around you feel they have the freedom to say things, whether they are good or bad, without putting your job at risk, you are not allowing yourself to be helped. If you do not have the humility to listen to the things that you do not like so much, it is difficult for you to continue on the right path,"

It's a great message for any young tennis player and generally any player as well. It's also a very humbling stance to take for someone who practically proved over the years that he's got tennis in his small pocket. However, as humble as ever, Nadal knows it did not come from him alone but rather a whole team of people who worked in sync towards a common goal.