Yes, I am a Nadal fan, and I am following him since 2006 when he had a perfect clay season and won French for the second time, and reached the Wimbledon final. That was the time when Federer was winning everything else, and Rafa was starting to become the thorn on the path of Roger's global domination. Somehow i always root for the challenger, who seems to work harder than the champion. That's why i like Messi (since 2008) because that time he was the challenger to Ronaldo, and Barcelona because they were dismantling Real Madrid reign.
This is an old book and covers Nadal's journey till 2010 US Open. When he won his 10th grand slam at U.S. Open, completed his golden career slam and was crowned number one. I think this was the best time for him to release this book, because we all know what happened in 2011, when a resurgent Djokovic after playing third wheel for long made his claim to the throne and shocked Nadal, who mind you - too was in his best form, in 3 out of 4 slams. That was the year, when i felt the pain what Roger's fan used to feel every grand slam final between Roger and Rafa (till recently anyway).
The book starts with the greatest match ever - The 2008 Wimbledon final between Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal, and even though we all know the outcome, it was good to read about every set through Rafa's perspective. As the match progresses, the book takes you through Rafa's childhood, his close relationship with his family, his training with hard taskmaster uncle Tony, his love for football, and what it means to him to be successful at the highest level. Frankly, most of it is about family-hardwork- success, like many other biographies, but I admit, I still loved it. It is not the most magical book, but I liked it because it is Rafael Nadal's story.
After the success in 2008 Wimbledon final, which works as a perfect canvas to paint Rafa's coming of age story, the 2010 final with Djokovic is the second canvas through which his struggles, injuries, and his story till the present is painted.
For me it was a fun read. To get to know more about a player you love, is something fantastic. And i read this book 6 years after it's released, and in terms of sporting careers, Rafa who was at the top of the world in 2010, is now going through later phases of his sporting journey. So I was able to compare each and every thing he was doing then to what is happening with him now.
Overall, I would say, this one is just for tennis and Rafa fans. If you are a Rafa fan, this is a great book to know your player. However the one thing i still couldn't understand is - why he is a Real Madrid fan, and not Barcelona. His uncle played for Barcelona, his home is in the Catalan region, but he loves Real Madrid more than Barca. Guess your favorites can't be all perfect. Right?!
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