Moya: 'Rafa will play to the death'

Before Rafael Nadal’s opener at Roland Garros, coach Carlos Moya sat down with ATPTour.com and spoke with his habitual optimism — but not without plenty of compelling reasons.

The winner of 22 Grand Slams arrives at his dream tournament more vulnerable than ever. He’s been under the knife, and has been riding a roller-coaster of hope and disappointment ever since. The Spaniard is walking a fine line. So long has his ordeal been, so dark many of his days, that he looked like he may never return.

Now he is back, albeit with mixed results — but how could they not be after so long on the sidelines? His opponent in the first round will be Alexander Zverev. The German is in better form than anyone, entering Paris behind his title run at the Rome ATP Masters 1000.

It's a tough draw for Nadal, but also for Zverev, who must face the 14-time Roland Garros champion on what has essentially become his home court.

Hours before the marquee clash, Moya revealed the depth of Nadal's insecurity, explained the painstaking road to arriving at Roland Garros and confirmed what we already knew: that Nadal will give his all on the clay where he built a legacy the likes of which has never been seen before.

How is Rafa?
Improving. On the up. The level in practice is pretty high. Now he needs to bring that to the matches. We believe he’s fit enough to play with confidence. 

He also practised well in Rome, but then he lost to Hurkacz in the second round. Not like here. There were a lot of ups and downs there. At times he would play at a high level, but he lacked consistency... Since his return it was perhaps the first time he went into a match feeling confident [against Hurkacz]. It didn’t go as we expected. Now, the week he’s had of practice could help him produce the level he always looks for in competition.

So has this been the best training since his return?
Without a doubt. In Rome he had some good sessions and others not so good. Here, they’ve all been positive. They’re practice sessions, but he hasn’t lost a set so far. I think it’s come at the best time. It was also to be expected. We were coming from a long way down, the furthest down, at least since I’ve been working with him. Progress has been positive. Everything that happened in the past has stayed there, at least so far. 

It’s an amazing journey at @RolandGarros. Each match has been amazing with the support and love you have given me.
Thank you @Infosys, I am humbled by this special celebration.
Vamos! 💪#RafaXInfosys #RolandGarros#LegendsLeaveTheirMark pic.twitter.com/w7sXKwoUtc

— Rafa Nadal (@RafaelNadal) May 25, 2024

Nadal has built up 13 hours of preparation on court...
This time he’s quite a way further back than on other occasions. That’s why he’s practising longer hours than normal. We’ve had to accelerate his preparations with more time on court. It’s something we don’t like doing, but in the end we have to adapt to what we think Rafa needs. And that’s the way it is this time. 

And against tough opponents.
That has often been the case. When we’ve come to Roland Garros, he’s practised against Zverev, Tsitsipas, etc., on the days leading up to his opener. It’s true that we’ve also ramped up in that regard. Looking for first opponents that give him more rhythm, that allow him to find form without killing him, so to speak. Then, according to how the week has progressed, we’ve been more demanding in that regard too. It’s all part of a process. At least we’re seeing him enjoy himself in practice, something that wasn’t happening months ago. 

Were you following the draw on Friday?
They sent me messages, we weren’t following it.

I understand it wasn’t just one or two messages.
Quite a few…

That was bad luck.
Of course, it’s one of the worst opponents he could get [Zverev]. He’s coming in in great shape, no injuries and confident. And he just won in Rome. It was always something that could happen. Considering the fact that Rafa is unseeded, the draws have been kind until now, fair. This time it was the worst that could happen. We were hoping for a draw that would allow him to find his rhythm and confidence gradually. But the circumstances are different. We got Zverev and we have to approach it in the best way possible.

He is raring to go, and has a very positive attitude. For our part, we know where we are and who we’re with. You hold onto that. It’s going to be a very tough, well-fought match. If Rafa can play at the level he has been in practice... why not think positive?

If you had to choose: Zverev in Round 1or Zverev in Round 3?
As deep as possible. That would mean Rafa would have won matches and he would have momentum. I don’t think it’s positive playing Zverev in the first round, honestly. We have to be honest and say things as they are.

What has been the biggest challenge since the operation?
The main challenge was trying to be competitive again. That’s been an uncertainty for Rafa since the operation. In Brisbane we saw a version that could have been close to that. It’s true that it was in best-of-three matches, and against opponents that weren’t among the best. We saw a good Nadal there. Then more problems came, many day-to-day problems that ate away at his morale, leading him to have difficult thoughts.

Can you expand on that?
This time it was a jigsaw with a lot of pieces out of place. We’ve tried to reorganise them little by little. We were unable to train as often as we wanted, with problems in many movements and shots. He’s never been free to play without thinking that he could hurt himself or feeling limited. As he couldn’t practise a lot of things, there were things missing. Some of the pain went away, but it was replaced by other pains. Every day was a new challenge, more pieces out of place.

What about now?
Now it seems like, for the first time, the pieces are starting to be in the right place and that he can play with peace of mind, with the instinctiveness he was lacking a few months ago. The challenge was to rearrange the puzzle, which was a mess from top to bottom. We believe everything is now in the right place. 

It’s Nadal and it’s Roland Garros. Is he here to win the tournament, or does he believe playing a part is acceptable?
There will be no holding back now. Rafa will play to the death, at 100 per cent, giving his all. We’re in a new situation: five-set matches. He hasn’t done that for two years, but we think he’s ready.

There’s no more risk than there was in Brisbane or any other tournament. If something happens to him it’s not for a lack of practice or matches. It will be because of an exertion that his body hasn’t been able to cope with, but we’re confident nothing should happen.

For more from this interview with Moya, including his thoughts on whether Nadal would retire, subscribe now for the exclusive Q&A in Thursday’s ATP Tour Insider issue.