"When we arrived, we weren’t thinking about winning" - Roig on Nadal's chances at Wimbledon
ATP
Rafael Nadal's coach, Francisco Roig, admitted that the Spaniard's team didn't really think about winning the 2022 Wimbledon Championships at the start of the tournament.
The 22-time Grand Slam champion wasn't sure about his participation at the All England Club this year. Eventually, he recovered in time, and now, he will play in the quarter-final of the tournament against Taylor Fritz.
His coach, Francisco Roig spoke to the ATPTour.com before the meeting as he expects a difficult match. He admitted that prior to the tournament, Nadal didn't think about winning, but suddenly, he's one of the favorites to lift the trophy in London.
"It's good. We managed to train a lot. There were a couple of days when we almost played for four hours. When we got here, the first thing was to be able to compete. He arrived here unsure about his foot treatment in Mallorca, even though it went well for him."
"The goal was to keep playing better every day. Now we’re in that situation. Given how last-minute it was, we can be happy after three years without playing on grass. So far, we’re doing well. When we arrived, we weren’t thinking about winning, but now he is among the favorites."
Roig also spoke about Nadal's upcoming opponent. Fritz is a dangerous player with a strong serve and a powerful forehand, which is something that the Spaniard's team is, of course, well aware of.
"Taylor is a player that was very promising. Today, his game has progressed a lot, he’s had his best results quite recently. Now he hits the ball quite well, and maybe before he struggled with mobility."
"Today he moves much better and that’s why his ranking has gone up. He’s very dangerous on grass, he hits the ball hard. We’ll have to have a great day."
Nadal isn't a natural grass-court player. It's his weakest surface, but he still managed to win two titles at Wimbledon before. This year, it's been about improving on the go, as Roig revealed.
"I think he’s looked really good in the last two matches, although he struggled to close them out. There was a big difference in the level of ball striking, in dominating, going forward. The more he goes to the net, the better he’ll hit the ball."
"Everything you do can always be done better, especially on grass. We’re working on things every day, facets that will increase his chances on court."
"You do things to improve. That is what we’re trying on our day off. We’re on grass and we need to improve things. We’re working on specific things that he may see in the match so that when he has to execute them, he is confident because he’s practised them."
