Ariana Geerlings, a rising star in the world of tennis, has recently voiced her criticism of the training methods utilized at the prestigious Rafael Nadal’s academy. The academy, located in Nadal’s hometown of Manacor and led by his uncle, Toni Nadal, has been a prominent institution for seven years.
Geerlings, an 18-year-old tennis prospect from Spain, has just begun her journey in the senior ranks. After parting ways with the Rafa Nadal Tennis Academy, she is aiming to break into the top 700 in the world rankings.
In her candid critique, Geerlings expressed her belief that her career will benefit from the split, emphasizing the demanding workload imposed on players at the academy, which has led to various complications.
“They try to rely a lot on their career,” Geerlings explained. “They train for many hours, and Toni [Nadal] is very present. He trained me a lot.”
“They take the same philosophy as Rafa, a lot of training and little rest, totally focused on the track. That caused many injuries, because no one has Rafa’s physique. Many of us couldn’t keep up with the pace of training five hours a day and not having rest days.”
Geerlings believes that a personalized approach, tailored to each player’s needs, would be more appropriate, acknowledging the challenges of implementing individualized plans in a large academy setting.
Meanwhile, the tennis world is abuzz with anticipation as Rafael Nadal announced his official comeback, confirming his participation in the Brisbane International, commencing on January 7.
“After a year away from competition, it’s time to come back,” Nadal declared in a video posted to Twitter. “It will be in Brisbane the first week of January. I’ll see you there.” Join our WhatsApp community for exclusive tennis news.
Jessica Roberts serves up the latest in the world of tennis. With a love for the racket sport, she reports on tennis matches, player rankings, and Grand Slam events, ensuring readers stay informed about the tennis world.
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