Rafael Nadal in Berrettini's eyes: A bull on the court

Italy’s Matteo Berrettini has highlighted the impact of Spain’s legendary tennis star Rafael Nadal during his early years as a tennis player.

The 37-year-old is regarded as one of the greatest players in the history of men’s tennis in the Open era, having won as many as 22 Grand Slam titles.

Fourteen of those victories came while playing at the Roland Garros, which is why he is also known as the ‘King of Clay’.

Berrettini was recently quoted in a report explaining the impact Nadal had on him during his early years as a professional tennis player.

"I grew up watching Roger [Federer] and Rafa [Nadal],” he said. “And they were the guys that you had to watch. Everything they were doing reflected their personality. For example, The look Rafa was playing at the beginning was a sleeveless [top] and long shorts.”

Berrettini went on to highlight that watching Nadal play during his early years made him feel like a ‘bull’ on the court, as his energy was ‘all over the place’.

"It was like a bull got on the court,” he said. “And his energy was all over the place. You could feel that this look fits him. If you put that look on anybody [else] on tour, that would have been a disaster.”

Nadal has struggled with fitness concerns over the last 24 months, and because of this, he announced in 2023 that the 2024 season would be his last at the highest level.

The legendary tennis star returned to the court this year after a lengthy injury layoff but suffered another injury during the Brisbane International.

That forced him to withdraw from the Australian Open, and he was ruled out of action for the next two months.

The former world number one returned during the Barcelona Open, but results have not gone his way since then. In the recently concluded French Open, he was knocked out after losing in the first round to Germany’s Alexander Zverev in straight sets with a score of 6-3, 7-6, 6-3.