Andy Murray has revealed the debt of gratitude he owes to Rafael Nadal for helping him reach new levels as a young player.
Murray and Nadal were building their careers at around the same time, although Nadal made his breakthrough much earlier, mainly because of how developed he was physically.
However, in an interview with UK magazine Hello, Murray explained how a conversation he had with Nadal as youngsters ended up shaping his career.
“Rafa and I are good friends and we have been since we were young,” Murray said.
“We’ve grown up in competition together and hearing about his training set-up in Spain was a pivotal moment for me.
“He was able to practice so much more than me and hitting with Top 100 players when he was 14/15, I knew instantly I would have to change my set-up in the UK.
“I called my mum that night and told her I’d made my mind up, I was moving to Spain!”
Following the conversation with mother Judy, Andy Murray did indeed head to Spain. He trained in Barcelona and still attributes much of his success to what he learned there.
