the essential
Director of performance at the Ligue d’Occitanie, Marc Barbier met Rafael Nadal a lot when he coached Hugo Gaston, until February 2023. He shares his (almost) shared memories with the Majorcan (38 years old), who announced this Thursday to retire at the end of the season.
On the circuit, in the world of coaches and players, what was the image of Rafael Nadal? What did he represent?
He inspired immense respect. He had a natural charisma, that of a star, while he was not at all inaccessible or arrogant. On the contrary, with him and his staff, everything was very simple. It was rather the world around, out of modesty and admiration, which put a form of distance with Rafa given everything he represented. It’s a monument. When he was at a tournament, you could see that he was focused on his schedule for the day, without wasting time wandering around or wandering around. It also limited the possibilities of really getting in touch with him because you didn’t want to disturb him. He had his rituals, including in the warm-up room with his physio who put bandages on each finger to avoid blisters. It was quite funny and surprising. Rafa exuded energy, every moment, even the way he walked. He walked purposefully, quickly, like when he ran down the baseline after a change of ends. Behind the scenes, it was a bit like a match, actually. Everything was optimized.
When you were training Hugo Gaston, did you have the chance to share special moments with Nadal?
With Rafa, it was the story of missed opportunities. He is Hugo’s idol and it would have been great to face him in a tournament. This almost happened at Roland-Garros, in 2021, in the second round, but Hugo had a very bad match against Richard Gasquet in the first. A big disappointment for us. Hugo knew he could play Rafa behind. Same scenario at Wimbledon, in 2022, where Hugo lost against Lorenzo Sonego in 2e round, playing a good match this time, three very close sets. I remember that the Italian’s clan exploded with joy after this victory because they knew that Lorenzo was going to have the chance to face Nadal on the Wim’derrière Central.
Was Hugo able to train with him?
Here too, a missed opportunity. One year, at Bercy, Hugo arrived there a little injured, with a tear in his psoas. We are doing a warm-up on the court, Nadal was training nearby with the Belgian David Goffin. Carlos Moya, his coach, comes to see us and asks us if we want to train with Rafa the next day. We look at each other with Hugo, we hesitate given Hugo’s injury. Moya doesn’t take it badly but tells us very kindly: “Be careful, if you say yes, tomorrow you have to be all in.” Suddenly, with Hugo, we understood that it was dead and we preferred to decline out of respect. So it came close three times. And when I brought the young coaches of the Ligue Occitanie to the Nadal Academy, in 2023, in Mallorca, it was not linked to a particular link with Rafa. We had just seen him on site.
What makes Nadal different from Djokovic and Federer?
His personality. He brought colors with his corsair look when he was young. While respecting all the components of the circuit, from the players to the officials, he brought an incredible fighting spirit which revolutionized the world of tennis, coming out of a period that was a little smoother, colder and even robotic. It even impacted sport at large. He never hid behind the wounds, his pain. He charmed many generations.
And he continually advanced his game…
This is true, constantly, especially in service. At the end, with his very pretty hand, he also volleyed in an incredible way. Rafa is a very intelligent person, who has constantly adapted to changes on the circuit, with humility, also accepting the few defeats.
Apart from the 14 titles at Roland-Garros and the 912 weeks spent in the world Top 10, Djokovic has stolen many records…
Same thing for Federer, who doesn’t have many records anymore. That’s why they and Rafa are so close. They find themselves on things other than the prize list, on deep values. We were really lucky to witness this monumental career and the rivalry between the three, and even the four since I am joining Andy Murray, for whom I have total admiration for his resilience, especially after his hip surgery.
