Rafa Nadal: “Pirate pants and sleeveless shirts seem horrible to me today. With Federer everything was neater, with more class”

At 40 years old, the life of Rafa Nadal has taken a radical turn. Tennis has given way to the father of two children, although his schedule continues to be full of events, a sign of the legacy he has left during his long and successful career in tennis. He is one of the icons of the racket, of sport in general.

His rivalry with the Swiss Roger Federer It is part of the story. Their duel in the 2008 Wimbledon final, interrupted by rain and resolved in the fifth set, is considered the best match ever.

For the quality, the emotion and since Rafa Nadal ended the hegemony in the ‘Cathedral’ of Roger Federer. A young king of Roland Garros, with long hair tamed by a bandana, dressed in a sleeveless T-shirt and groundbreaking pirate pants, defeated the elegant Swiss, who wore a jacket upon entering the court and during the ceremony. Two opposite styles.

Nadal now remembers it in a conversation in the magazine GQ.com on the occasion of the publication of his new book ‘Rafa Nadal’, a very careful volume based on his most memorable images, which he considers essential as a memory of those times.

Nadal confesses that that first style is not to his liking now. Those beginnings with capri pants and sleeveless t-shirts. Today it seems horrible to me, to be honest,” he says. Although he acknowledges that it helped him “create my own identity. People recognized me because of those groundbreaking clothes, because of my long hair, the ribbon on my head. “It was something different.”

He highlighted the difference with Roger Federer. “With Roger everything was neater, with more class. And suddenly I appeared, with those hairs and a much more risky, less orthodox style. I enjoyed that time a lot, although twenty years later I see it with different eyes,” he analyzes.

In his conversation with American journalist Jon Wertheim, he reveals that “I never liked playing dressed all in black. If you look closely, I almost always chose bright tones, full of energy. I think it’s because I have always connected very well with children, and the youngest ones love colors. That’s why I preferred to dress brightly on the court.”

There was one exception, which he notes: “However, for the night sessions in New York I was fascinated by wearing an all-black outfit. Those nights had something magical, an atmosphere of pure madness. If I had to choose a special moment or image, I would definitely choose that one.”

Rafa Nadal He adopted a more conservative style as he became an experienced tennis player on the circuit. He adapted his ‘look’ to his age. Although those capri pants, the bandana and the sleeveless shirt, stark white in the case of Wimbledon, immediately became part of the museum of the All England Club, the headquarters of the Grand Slam on grass.

The Spaniard had to retire due to a hip injury, he shelved his career at the end of 2024, after taking advantage of the Paris Olympic Games and the Final 8 of the Davis Cup. The competition is part of the past, he enjoys his family, he also continues to be an active person in different initiatives that he has undertaken, with more or less direct relationship with tennis.