As if Nadal was the most imaginative player

Rafael Nadal’s uncle Toni’s scathing critique of modern tennis left numerous fans of the sport unimpressed. Toni, who guided his nephew to 16 of his 22 singles major titles, opined that modern tennis is all about hitting the ball hard and running with little variation or creativity. He also criticized today’s top 10 players except Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz.

Speaking recently to ESPN, Toni laid bare his dislike for tennis on the basis of how the sport is played these days.

“I don’t really like modern tennis; I like rallies, plays where a drop shot is combined with a lob, where someone tries to use their game to do something to avoid being attacked . Today it’s all about hitting the ball as hard as you can and running,” Toni said.

He went on to laud both Sinner and Alcaraz as ‘complete’ players. Toni also praised former top 10 stars Juan Martin del Potro, Andy Murray, David Ferrer and Tomas Berdych. According to him, these former players almost always made deep runs in the biggest tournaments unlike contemporary top 10 stars.

“Alcaraz is a very complete player, very brilliant, and Sinner too; he has total control and command of the ball. But before, watching Del Potro play was a joy, Murray, David Ferrer, Berdych. They never lost against an inferior opponent; they only lost from the quarterfinals onward. Today, a top 10 player loses to someone ranked 90th; I don’t like it,” he added.

Many tennis fans on Reddit took notice of Rafael Nadal‘s uncle’s take. Some of them took swipes at his nephew, the now-retired former World No. 1 Spaniard, who was feared by rivals because of his heavy topspin-laced groundstrokes and his uncanny ability to retrieve balls even in the most difficult situations.

“As if Nadal was the most imaginative player lol,” one fan wrote.

“I don’t want to minimize Rafa but bro your nephew pretty much hit it as hard with insane spin and then ran around retrieving lol,” commented another.

“The more Toni the talks the more I’m convinced Nadal was held back in some fashion by his coaching,” another fan chimed in.

Some also opined that Toni has a more positive perception of former players than active ones.

“Old people always think their version of things was better. So refreshing when they can appreciate the evolution (rare),” wrote one.

“Talking about Berdych and Delpo as if they were the most patient point constructors on the Tour really is peak rose-tinted nostalgia,” another added.

“Toni is just turning into a grumpy granpa “ooh in my good ol’days” kinda of guy, hun?,” weighed in yet another fan.

“We should try to slow the game down” – Rafael Nadal’s uncle Toni’s 2025 take on modern tennis players being more injury-prone

In November 2025, Toni Nadal spoke to La Gazzetta dello Sport and dismissed the suggestion that modern-day tennis players are getting more frequently injured compared to former players because of the hectic schedule. Instead, he opined that it’s the hard-hitting and fast-and-furious style of play that’s causing the issues.

“It’s not a question of the schedule. Many will disagree now, but the real problem is that the ball always goes too fast. It’s not a question of quantity, but of intensity and violence of the movement. There are almost no “tactical” players like Coria or Gaudio anymore, who tried to build the play,” Toni said.

“Today it’s often just a competition to see who hits the ball the hardest. And when you make such rapid movements, when you approach a ball at full speed, brake and restart, it’s easy for your body to go to the limit and get injured. I think we should try to slow the game down a bit,” he added.

These days, Toni Nadal primarily works with young talents at his nephew’s famed Mallorca academy. His work with more established players tends to be more in the capacity of a consultant rather than a full-time coach. For instance, last year, he spent time working with Alexander Zverev in Mallorca, providing mentorship and training to the German star who recently won his maiden major at the French Open.