French Open 2022: The one who learns the tricks of tennis, will try to beat him, who will win in the Guru-disciple collision?

When the final of the men’s singles of the French Open-2022 will be played on Sunday, then one thing will be seen which is very different and also special. In this final, Spain’s legendary player Rafael Nadal will face the 23-year-old youth of Norway. Kasper Rudd (Rafael Nadal vs Casper Ruud). Nadal is a 13-time French Open winner and is called the king of the red gravel or clay court on which the French Open is played. A young player like Rudd will compete with this legend. Rudd is the first player from his country to reach the final of a Grand Slam. But this is no different. The different thing is that this collision is a Guru-disciple collision. Nadal is in a way Rudd’s mentor because Rudd has trained at Nadal’s Tennis Academy.

The semi-final played between Nadal and Alexander Zverev could not be completed because Zverev was injured and so Nadal reached the final. At the same time, Rudd defeated Marin Chilich of Croatia and entered the final. After the match, Rudd himself admitted this. These two have not played a single match against each other so far. After the match, Rudd said of the confrontation with Nadal, “Rafa has been my idol. Nadal was the only one left out of the Big Three that I hadn’t played against. He will play with a child from his own academy. It will be great fun. I dreamed of it.”

Training since 2018

One of the reasons that Rudd has reached today is his hard work. On the basis of this, Rudd has earned a name and has created history for his country. But Nadal’s academy has also played an important role in this. Rudd’s initial coach is his father and former tennis player Kristen Rudd. It was from his father that Rudd learned the nuances of tennis. After this he was coached by other stalwarts but since 2018 he is training at Nadal’s academy in Spain. In one of his interviews, Rudd said of Nadal’s academy, “It’s wonderful. You have been here and seen all its facilities. It is increasing continuously. There are 15 new courts. It is one of the 10 best places in the world to focus on my career.”

Benefit from practicing with Nadal

Rudd has refined his game by practicing with Nadal and watching him practice. In an interview given to ATP on 31 December 2019, Rudd said, “If Nadal plays with 100 percent energy in a match, he puts in 120 percent in practice. When I practice with Nadal, he pushes me. I get tired after a few hours. These are tough sessions but they are great.”