The Spaniard says there's more to life than chasing Roger Federe's major title count.
As the GOAT of tennis debate rages on with no end in sight, Rafael Nadal is more than happy to drop out of the arms race—at least for the time being.
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After winning his 11th Roland Garros and 17th major title on Sunday Nadal says he has no interest in chasing Roger Federer’s record of 20 major titles. Now that doesn’t mean he won’t chase down titles with the same ferocity that he won Roland Garros with on Sunday—it simply means that the Spaniard isn’t obsessed with the numbers, and the numbers have zero impact on his quality of life.
"I have never been crazy about this kind of stuff," said Nadal in Paris on Sunday. "You can't always be frustrated if somebody has more money than you, a bigger house than you, if somebody has more Grand Slams than you.”
Nadal says that envy isn’t in his arsenal the same way that a banana forehand and wicked crosscourt backhand are.
"You can't live with this feeling,” he said, adding: “Of course I would love to have 20 like Roger in the future or even more but it's not something that is on my mind."
Nadal, who turned 32 at Roland Garros, is more than four years Federer’s junior. The Swiss will turn 37 in August and he has won four majors since he turned 30. Nadal has already won three majors behind his thirtieth birthday, which leads some to believe that he could be in line to one day catch Federer.
But time keeps marching on, and Grand Slam titles will not get any easier to win for Nadal. He knows this and he’s at peace with whatever the future may bring.
Hello everybody. You can imagine the happiness today. Now back at home in Mallorca and will post later some pictures on my Instagram account from these weeks at @rolandgarros thanks all for your support pic.twitter.com/mXcyz1m5TO
— Rafa Nadal (@RafaelNadal) June 11, 2018
"You can't fight against age and you can't fight against the watch,” he said. “The watch keeps going always. So that's it. If you tell me seven, eight years ago that I will be here at 32 years old having this trophy with me again, I will tell you that is something almost impossible, but here we are.”
There’s more to life than racking up major titles, says Nadal. He’s a man who enjoys his fishing and boating and family time with equal zest. Long after the last ball is struck, Nadal will still be content with his lot in life, and that’s part of what makes him so special.
"So I am not much worried about the future,” he said. “Tennis is a very important part of my life, without a doubt, but is not everything."
