Rafael Nadal may not end up winning a third Wimbledon title but he surely taught his ‘bête noire’ Nick Kyrgios both on the court and off it last night: he showed the Australian firebrand how to win a high pressure match and explained how Kyrgios’s talents could win him a Grand Slam title one day.
Nadal won 6-3, 3-6, 7-6, 7-6 in the epic grudge game, but so much of the three hours he took was spent dealing with Kyrgios’s antics, his shouting to the umpire and at one point even dodging a bullet of a ball hitting straight at him.
There were instances where Nadal could have lost his calm and be angry but instead he kept his cool to figure out the way to win the match. That’s exactly the same message he wanted to convey to young hothead Kyrgios.
“He is a young and talented player. But there are a lot of important things that you need to do to become a champion. He has got a lot of ingredients but there remains an important one and that is love, the passion for this game. Without really loving this game, it is difficult to achieve important things. Anyways, with his talent and serve he can win a Grand Slam, of course”, Nadal said after winning the match.
