Inside story on Rafael Nadal’s tennis rackets in an exclusive interview
Tennis history changed forever when nine-year-old Rafael Nadal picked up a Babolat racket for the first time.
In a shop in his hometown of Manacor in Mallorca, young Rafa was with his uncle and soon-to-be full-time coach Toni when the crucial moment arrived, as he decided to move away from his dream of being a footballer and pursue a tennis dream.
Now, as he calls time on his historic career at the Davis Cup, the memories and records Nadal has set down the years are being reflected upon around the sporting world and for Eric Babolat, this journey has been so special.
As CEO of the company that bears his family name, Eric has cherished every moment of the Nadal story and here, he takes us through the story through his eyes.
How did all start for Rafa and Babolat?
“At nine he decided to go to tennis and not to soccer, which was his first plan. He picked up a racket in the shop in Manacor with his uncle Toni and it was a Babolat racket. Then at 12, he had his first contract with Babolat and very soon we realised that this young Spanish player was strong.”
When did you first realise Nadal was special and can you remember your first meeting with him?
“There are many players at that age that are strong, good juniors, but this one was a bit special. I saw him for the first time when he was in New York and I tried to speak to him in English, but he didn’t understand. I didn’t speak Spanish so I’m sure he doesn’t remember this moment. Since then, we have had some great times together.”
How did it work with Babolat and Nadal? Did he ask you to make changes or did you present new rackets and strings to him each year?
Normally we go to him. We have 300 professional athletes with professionals and juniors, but usually we go to where the players train. With Rafa we go to his Academy in November and December. The racket specs are set for the year and then sometimes the player adjusts the strings. Many times with Rafa we go to his Academy in Manacor to fine tune everything.”
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Do you build a Babolat racket that would suit Nadal’s dynamic style of play?
“We did. What we do at Babolat for him is prepare his racket and give him confidence. He picked the Babolat Pure Aero racked by himself and that moment created history in tennis because it is now a pillar of the sport. We created this racket for him because of the way he threw his racket in the air, which was quite unique. It is the racket Carlitos Alcaraz is using now. We also developed a string for him that was the RPM Blast that gives him even more topspin.”
Was he good to work with?
It was always easy to work with Rafa because what he wanted from us was more spin, more spin, more spin. If we gave him that, he was happy with us. He was very much involved, but not so much technically. He would tell us about the feel, we spoke to his coach and his team and it was always looking for more spin… more spin. We then go and do some testing and give him the feedback.”
In part two of our interview with Eric Babolat, we will look at his best memories with Nadal and reflect on the end of his historic career.
