Andrea Petkovic opined on Rafael Nadal’s ‘biggest strength’ which sculpted the Spaniard into the athlete he ended up becoming. She claimed that people often confuse his biggest strength for one of his in-game attributes.

Nadal hung up his racket after Spain lost to the Netherlands in the quarterfinals of the 2024 Davis Cup Finals. The eyes of tennis fans all around the world teared up during an emotional ceremony that was held in honor of the 38-year-old’s illustrious career, following the tie.

Over the years, the Spaniard has terrorized his opponents with various aspects of his game be it his infamous forehand, his ability to return balls that looked out of reach, his tennis intelligence, and many more.

However, according to former German professional tennis pro Andrea Petkovic, none of the aforementioned aspects of Nadal’s game were his biggest strength.

“The one thing people get wrong about Rafa is his biggest strength. They say it’s his forehand, his athleticism, his tactical intelligence, his way of adapting, his surprising talent at the net. All of this is true in its own right but none of these aspects of his game are his biggest strength,” Petkovic said via her Substack.

The 37-year-old claimed that it was the 14-time Roland Garros champion’s ‘fear’ that pushed him to raise his level since he genuinely believed he wouldn’t be able to keep up with his contemporaries otherwise. She also hailed him as the ‘greatest athlete’ to play with fear in their heart.

Since her retirement in 2022, the German has been analyzing the sport with her unique insights.

“His biggest strength had always been that he was scared. Before every match, even in the 14th year of him winning the French Open, he deeply and profoundly believed that he would lose in the first round to a qualifier. It made him run faster, work harder, try more. It’s where the intensity we learned to love stems from. It’s the source of all his being.”

“This fear made him who he is as a tennis player. Who he was. It made him the greatest athlete to ever play a sport with fear in his heart.”

Rafael Nadal discusses importance of doubts after winning French Open 2017

After his ninth French Open win in 2014, Rafael Nadal saw an uncharacteristic dip in form which saw him losing in the earlier rounds of Majors in the following couple of years.

However, after bringing Carlos Moya on board as head coach, the Spaniard found his rhythm again. He clinched the 2017 French Open, which was his 10th title in Paris and popularly dubbed ‘La Decima.’

During the post-match press conference, Nadal admitted that he had doubts every day that pushed him to develop himself not only as a tennis player but also as a human being.

“I have doubts every day,” Nadal said. “It’s not about, the doubts I think are good because the doubts give you the possibility to work with more intensity, with being more humble, and accepting that you need to keep working hard to improve things.”

During his farewell speech, Rafael Nadal said that he wanted to be remembered as a ‘good person’ and was happy to bid tennis adieu with the legacy he achieved.