2022 US Open girls’ singles champion Alexandra Eala recently revealed that Rafael Nadal is her idol and hailed his fighting spirit. The 17-year-old is a student at his tennis academy and has been there since the age of 12.
In her post-match press conference, Eala was asked about how she got into the Rafa Nadal Academy. The 10th seed stated that she wanted to follow in the footsteps of the 22-time Grand Slam champion, adding that he was someone a lot of people should try to emulate.
The teenager also claimed that the academy organizers reached out to her parents after she won a tournament in France, and that’s how she ended up joining it.
“Well, I think my idol is obviously Rafa. But I’m not just saying that because I’m in his academy (laughter). No, he’s a very good role model, something a lot of people should idolize and try to be. I won a tournament a couple years ago, maybe three years ago, in France. The academy reached out to my parents. After a while, long discussions, we decided that I would be based there,” Eala said.
The Filipina also declared that Rafael Nadal’s biggest quality is his fighting spirit, marveling at how calm and fired up he could be at the same time.
“The biggest thing I notice in Rafa is how he fights till the end, how his thoughts are so clear. He’s so calm, but at the same time so fired up. I think I really tried to channel that energy during this whole week. That’s also what I tried to show, people who look up to me, is to think with a clear head and to not act irrationally,” Eala added.
