Rafael Nadal, 40, says constant self-doubt and competing against tennis’s greatest players made him a better athlete.
On Monday’s episode of Bloomberg’s “Leaders with Francine Lacqua” podcast, the tennis legend spoke about the mentality that kept him going throughout his tennis career.
“I always had doubts, and for me, the doubts are good,” Nadal told podcast host Francine Lacqua. “For me, doubts are positive because they allow me to go on court knowing that I need to improve.”
Nadal said he didn’t let success make him complacent. Instead, he believed there was always more work to be done.
He added that his self-doubt wasn’t about whether he was good enough, but whether he was doing enough to reach his potential.
“It’s easy to say, OK, I am winning. I am super good. I keep practicing. But you lose this feeling of going on court every day with the motivation and determination to improve something,” Nadal said.
He added that going onto the court to practice or to stay fit was never enough to inspire him.
“My motivation was always going on court with the determination to improve something,” he added.
Beyond self-doubt, his “healthy” rivalry with Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic also made him a better player, Nadal said.
“We push each other to the limits,” he said. “Our rivalries help us to improve our level of tennis, our mentality, bringing our possibilities to the limit because we knew that if we were not doing things more or less the perfect way almost every day, the other will be better than us.”
Even so, they all have a “huge respect” for one another, Nadal said.
“At the end of the day, we are achieving our dreams. So why do we need to fight in a negative way?” Nadal said.
Nadal retired in 2024 after one of the most decorated careers in tennis history that included 22 Grand Slam singles titles. A former world No. 1 for 209 weeks, he is widely regarded as the greatest clay-court player of all time, having won a record 14 French Open titles.
Nadal joins a growing list of athletes who have opened up about what helps them stay at the top of their sport.
Masters champion Rory McIlroy has said that picturing the worst-case scenario helps him stay mentally sharp during competition.
“If you’re trying to overcome anxiety or nerves around performance, I try to think about, well, what’s the worst that could happen? I’m not going to die on the golf course,” McIlroy said in a 2025 interview.
NBA legend Michael Jordan has said his relentless competitive mindset is what drives his success both on and off the court.
“I’m cursed. That’s just the way I am. And I try to use it in the best positive way that I can,” he said in an April interview.
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