Rafael Nadal: 'It's better to have a good relationship with...'

• Tennis News
• Rafael Nadal

Grupo Mextenis was always clear that in order to open its new stadium, it was a priority to bring Rafael Nadal back. And they got it. The organization of the Acapulco Open confirmed the participation of the Spanish tennis player in its next edition, which is scheduled for February 21-26.

Nadal became the fifth figure to sign up for the AMT 2022. This will be the sixth time that the Mallorcan disputes the AMT, where he has been crowned three times (2005, 2013 and 2020), in addition to reaching the final in another edition.

“Rafa is very loved by the Mexican fans and also has an important history with our tournament. It is cause for celebration to have his presence, whenever possible, and due to the names we have this year, there is no doubt that there will be memorable duels to open the Arena GNP Seguros.

We are about to take one of the biggest steps in the evolution of the tournament and you can't ask for much more from this lineup,” said tournament director Raúl Zurutuza. The Mexican ATP 500 had already confirmed the participation of the Russian Daniil Medvedev, number two in the world, the German Alexander Zverev (3), the Greek Stefanos Tsitsipas (4) and the Italian Matteo Berrettini (7).

In this way there are already five members of the top-ten that confirm for the Acapulco Open 2022, an event that aims to have a luxury draw. It should be noted that Nadal has won the event three times, two on clay (2005, 2013) and one more on hard court (2020).

Nadal is a household name across the world

Speaking to Spanish media, Rafael Nadal revealed that his happiness doesn't depend on whether he wins more Slams than arch-rivals Novak Djokovic and Roger Federer. The three rivals are currently level on 20 Majors each.

"I don’t think my future happiness depends on whether I win one Grand Slam title more than Novak or Roger. So I will keep doing what I do, pushing myself to the maximum to keep enjoying my career. And from there, what will be will be, and I’ll welcome it," Nadal said.

"In my opinion, I believe the life is much better when you have a good relationship with everybody, especially in the locker room. That was like this during all my tennis career, with some very casual exceptions for some moments," Nadal stated.

"It's better to have a good relationship with everybody because then you are happier. With Novak, haven't been an exception. We always had a great relationship," added the 20-time Grand Slam champion.