Spanish tennis legend Rafael Nadal is known for his bull mentality while on the court. The Spaniard rarely gave up against the toughest of opponents. But Nadal has a different personality off the court. He is humble, caring, and kind. Former American tennis icon Andy Roddick has revealed the same about Nadal.
Roddick talked about Nadal’s locker room personality and revealed how the Spaniard always tried to be respectful to everyone. The former World No. 1 tennis player said that Nadal never let the results of his matches dictate his behavior in the locker room.
He claimed that even if the Spanish ace had a tough outing, he would remain cordial and respectful to his colleagues in the locker room. Roddick also drew a comparison where he talked about players who indulged in unruly behavior.
I know how Rafa was in the locker room. It feels like he never had a bad day & even if he was having a bad day, it never got in the way of him being cordial & respectful. There are a lot of tour guys who are not nearly as good as Rafa who will switch their grip tapes, regrip, and leave something on the floor. They will take a stretch from a trained and not say thank you. Andy Roddick said on his podcast, Served with Andy Roddick.
Andy Roddick keeps Novak Djokovic in the same league as Rafael Nadal
Andy Roddick also talked about Novak Djokovic being friendly in the locker room. Roddick said that while Rafael Nadal is amazing in the locker room, Djokovic does not get enough credit for how he behaves with his colleagues.
The American tennis legend said that it is great for the sport that players like Nadal and Djokovic know how to be courteous.
It's been nice in tennis that two of the top three stewards, including Novak, who does not get enough credit for how friendly he is with people in and around the locker room as well, know how to reset the table on. Hey, listen, I am the best player of all time but there is also common courtesy involved with the way I go do-to-day. Andy Roddick said.
Notably, while Nadal and Federer get all the praise for their classy behavior on and off the court, Djokovic is often targeted for his emotional outbursts on the court. The Serbian himself claimed that he was initially sidelined as people perceived him as arrogant.
However, as of late, quite a few fellow players have revealed that Djokovic is the opposite of what he looks like on the court. Roddick has only validated these claims with his recent remarks about the Serbian ace’s behavior in the locker room.
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