I recently watched Payal Kapadia’s much-acclaimed film ‘All We Imagine As Light’ (2024) at the Brahmaputra Valley Film Festival in Guwahati. There was a dialogue towards the end of the movie, in which Prabha’s estranged husband says to her ‘I tried to imagine you, tried to imagine the light, but in darkness it is difficult.’ But this is not a piece about Kapadia’s film.
I have been trying to write a tribute to Rafael Nadal since he announced his retirement in October 2024. But because of some personal issues, I have not been able to put words into paper. But on December 16, 2024, after some bouts of crying, I thought there was no better time to write a tribute to ‘The Rafael Nadal’. He, after all, has been the ‘light’ in my darkness, in millions of other people’s darkness. No wonder he made it to Google’s Year in Search 2024 recently released video.
I have been following his game since he burst onto the tennis courts as a prodigy in 2003. His tennis skills and aura are evident from his accomplishments – 22 Grand Slams, 14 French Opens, Five Year-end No. 1s, 36 Masters titles, 2 Olympic Gold Medals and much more. If I elaborate more on it, I am afraid that I will run out of space as this is not an article about his accomplishments.
Rafa as he is popularly known, is much more than a tennis player. He epitomises the never-say-die attitude like no other sportsperson. His mentality and resilience are well-established. Tennis experts and other players have often said that many players lose the match to Nadal, even before stepping on the court. That is the pressure of playing against Rafael Nadal. When players are asked about who has the best forehand, backhand, serve, volley, or movement; there are differing answers. But when they are asked who has the best mentality, there is only one answer.
Nadal suffers from Müller-Weiss syndrome, a rare degenerative condition that has affected the navicular bone in his left foot since 2005. He has had numerous career-threatening injuries that have kept him away from the tennis courts a lot, including during Grand Slams and the Olympics. Critics and experts had regularly predicted his downfall and early retirement. On the contrary, he went on to become World No. 1 in his 20s and 30s, illustrating his longevity.
This is why Rafa’s story resonates with people. I have heard countless people who suffer from life-threatening diseases say that Rafa is their idol. The same goes for sportspersons who suffer from career-threatening injuries. Kevin Anderson, a South African tennis player, once said that although he and Nadal are of the same age, the latter has always been an idol of his. Anderson is not alone. Nadal’s two greatest rivals – Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic – have also cited him as an inspiration as they have made their comebacks from injuries.
What makes Nadal’s mental strength remarkable is that he comes back again and again, again and again, and then again and again. One cannot count the man out. Ever. His most incredible Grand Slam victory in the Australian Open final against Daniil Medvedev in 2022 is known as ‘the miracle in Melbourne’. He came back from two sets to love down to win the final against a much younger opponent. This is why even when he announced that he would retire after the Davis Cup in November 2024, I had a thin hope. The hope that he will come back again. I do not think I have this outrageous confidence even in myself!
As any other 34-year-old person, I have had a fair share of adversities, heartbreaks and grief. While those moments have been painful, I am glad that I had Rafa along with me on my journey. Watching his tennis and his interviews – sometimes almost full of what can only be called ‘toxic positivity’ have kept me alive. Nadal has once famously said ‘I learned during all my career to enjoy suffering’. I have often thought about it but no matter what, I cannot bring myself to accept it. I do not enjoy suffering. Perhaps this is where a mere mortal like me differs from one of the greatest sportspersons of all time. His other quote – ‘If you don’t lose, you cannot enjoy the victories. So I have to accept both things,’ resonates better with me. I have come to accept that life is full of good and bad things.
His retirement has left me wondering – how am I supposed to deal with grief now? There will be no new matches and no new tennis interviews. All that is left is memories, thanks to the internet. I and millions of others will have to rely on the digital archives to draw inspiration. But we still have those precious memories. And for that, I am thankful to Rafa.
The author teaches Sociology at the Department of Humanities and Social Sciences, Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), Guwahati. She is one of the co-founders of Doing Sociology – an academic e-resource dedicated to making sociological knowledge accessible to the public.
Also Read: Birubala Rabha: A feminist tribute