Did David Beckham motivate Rafael Nadal to win the Wimbledon 2010 final?
Rafael Nadal is one of the greatest tennis players the world has come across; hence, it is likely that only another great personality can inspire him. It has come to our ears that David Beckham is a part of those who have inspired the amazing Spanish tennis player, Nadal. Beckham on his own is a very renowned sportsman and he has been one of the best football players of our time. Rafael Nadal himself believes that a conversation he had with David Beckham provided him with the perfect inspiration for his final match of Wimbledon 2010 against Tomas Berdych.
It was just after Nadal’s ruthless victory over Andy Murray, in the semi-finals, that he was asked if he wanted to meet with the former football captain of England, David Beckham. Nadal, who at that time was drained out of energy after the vigorous match, saw this as an opportunity which was not to be let go, so he agreed to meet with Beckham. The Spaniard has been a huge fan of Real Madrid and has admired Beckham’s work-ethic during the footballer’s time at the La Liga club. Both the sportsmen have similar beliefs. Beckham’s refusal to accept that any cause is lost out on the field is the exact same concept Nadal adopts while being out on the court. Their will to win is what has made them attain such success in their respective sporting careers.
"I know him from Madrid few years ago and it is always special meet with great sportsmen like David," Nadal said. Nadal says that there is no doubt that Beckham is a big star outside the stadium, but for him, Beckham is most admirable when out on the pitch because this is when the true strength of the footballer is felt. According to Nadal, out on the pitch Beckham fights like the best of them and even more than the rest. It is this passion of the footballer that has inspired the Spanish tennis player and this is why even after a tiring match the Spaniard was willing to meet up with Beckham. Surely, the footballer has had a hand in motivating Nadal to win the final.
Why wouldn’t Beckham inspire Nadal. His career as a footballer has been full of success. He was twice the runner up for FIFA World Player of the Year. He was captain of the England football team from 15th November 2000 until the 2006 FIFA World Cup finals. In 2004, he was the world’s highest-paid footballer when taking onto account salary and advertising deals. He was claimed to be the most searched in sports topics in the years 2003 and 2004 by the internet search engine Google. Such recognition globally has made him into a top fashion icon along with being an inspirational football player.
Rafael Nadal, had only 48 hours to rest after an exhausting clay-court tournament victory at the French Open, before he had to travel to London again in order to begin preparations for the grass-court championship at Wimbledon. This non-stop challenge greatly strained his body and after playing a month at Wimbledon his body started to show symptoms of exertion. He had been suffering from knee problems in the past few championships and was worried that the pain in his knee might flare up in the final match at Wimbledon, as the pain was never under his control. This might have put the tennis champion under a lot of stress mentally and physically. Therefore, the somewhat motivation provided to him by the inspiring footballer Beckham definitely played a role in the victory achieved by Nadal in the final showdown of Wimbledon 2010. Thankfully, he did not have to face knee problems in the final and was able to bring down his opponent and bag himself another Grand Slam title.
The tennis superstar is completely focused on winning when he is out on the court playing a match. It is this motivation to win that has led to his greatness as a professional tennis player. Everyone has an inspiration of some sort, for this champion it may have been the chat he had with David Beckham before playing the final.
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