Former British tennis ace Greg Rusedski has recalled the ‘frightening’ moment he first watched a 15-year-old Rafael Nadal play, admitting he’d ‘never seen anything like it’.
Nadal made tennis history on Sunday as he collected a record 21st Grand Slam title with victory over Daniil Medvedev at the Australian Open final in Melbourne.
The Spaniard put in one of the great Grand Slam final performances, as he battled back from two sets down to defeat the world No. 2, and tournament favourite three sets to two.
Following Nadal’s landmark victory down under, former star Rusedski has revealed the remarkable moment he first laid eyes on the tennis sensation when he was just 15.
Discussing the memory, the Brit revealed that the young Spaniard’s talents were ‘frightening’.
He wrote for the Telegraph: “I still clearly remember when I first saw Rafa. I was playing an exhibition in Mallorca. He was 15, practising on a clay court, and it was frightening.”
For context, the former British No. 1 went on to compare the experience to seeing footballing greats Cristiano Ronaldo and George Best first kick a ball.
He added: “You imagine that it was like seeing Cristiano Ronaldo or George Best playing soccer for the first time.
“I was just, ‘oh my God. I don’t want to play this kid’. I had never seen anything like it.
“He just had this extraordinary forehand, where he could have his opponent on a string, and a mind-boggling level of intensity.”
As well as catching a glimpse of the US Open champion when he was just 15, Rusedski also revealed he was able to play with him four years later.
Nadal’s victory in Melbourne moved him one clear of long-time rivals Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic in the Grand Slam titles list, which once again reignited the conversation of who is the sport’s greatest out of the big three.
And despite his praise for Nadal, Rusedski believes world No. 1 Djokovic is the man who will go down as the greatest, ahead of the Spaniard and Federer.
He said: “If you had wanted to bet your house on anyone at a very young age it would have been Rafa.
“He has delivered on that promise, but I do still believe that this era in tennis will end with Novak being regarded as the greatest.”
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