Rafa Nadal is keeping a close eye on the expansion work at the Rafa Nadal Academy By Movistar, which is currently in progress in Manacor. Before travelling to France to compete in the Paris Bercy Masters 1000, he had the chance to see the construction of a new indoor building that will house 3 new indoor hard courts and 7 covered clay courts. He also had the chance to take a look at the progress of the new spaces that will be used for fitness training, physiotherapy, psychology, nutrition and sports medicine, which will all form part of the new construction.

Rafa himself had the following to say about the growth of a project that began four years ago: “It’s clear that one of our outstanding tasks was to finish strengthening the complex. We already had high-quality facilities, but I believe that when the expansion is finished we’ll have a centre that will represent a decisive leap in quality. We’re going to increase the number of clay courts and indoor courts, which was a pending issue and very important for providing an optimal service. The adults who come here for one week will be certain they can train and also the boys and girls who are here throughout the year, who will now not miss any days of training. This means that now, in total, we will have ten indoor courts, which will give us great peace of mind in every sense in order to provide a better service and also mean that organising events is much more straight forward. It’s a very significant investment, but a totally necessary one. I think that it will represent a leap in quality that everyone will benefit from: children, adults and all the people that come to visit the Academy”.

Once the expansion is completed, the Rafa Nadal Academy by Movistar will boast first-rate sports infrastructures for the use of both the international public and Mallorcans. After the expansion, due to be completed in the coming months, the complex will have the following facilities:

• 19 outdoor hard courts
• 15 outdoor clay courts (7 of which will be constructed in 2021)
• 4 indoor hard courts
• 7 covered clay courts
• 1 football pitch
• 7 outdoor padel courts
• 6 indoor padel courts
• 1 Padbol court
• 2 squash courts
• 1 semi-Olympic swimming pool
• 1 outdoor pool
• Fitness Centre
• Spa

After returning to Mallorca, Rafa visited the Rafa Nadal Academy by Movistar to drop off the trophy he won last Sunday in Paris so that any fans who want to see it can do so by visiting the Rafa Nadal Museum Xperience. Rafa sent a message of thanks to all his fans for the support he has received over the past few days.

“Hello everybody, I’m now here in Mallorca, in Manacor and of course I’m very happy and satisfied with what I have achieved. It’s no less true that it’s a bittersweet feeling because we have been through some very complicated months in various senses and the most important thing is health. The second is the economic situation, which is causing many families to go through a hard time. We have to trust that all of this will improve, trust that the vaccine will come as soon as possible and that we can all go back to living in a more pleasant world and being happier. I also wanted to thank you for all the messages of support over the last few weeks. To me, although we have been a little more distanced than normal, as we have not been able to have direct contact, receiving so many messages of support on social media and directly to my mobile has helped me, without a doubt. Thank you so much for the support. Finally, I would like to tell you that I am leaving the trophy here in the museum at the Academy, in Manacor, for all of you that would like to see it. Remember that any of you that want to come are giving very significant help so that the Foundation and its projects can become increasingly important and we can help more people that really need it. A big hug for everyone and thank you so much”.

The Rafa Nadal Museum Xperience is the first and only exhibition of Rafa Nadal’s trophies which, apart from containing his 20 Grand Slam titles, also boasts the highlights of his sporting career from when he started out in tennis as just a boy up until today. The tour not only includes trophies, but also the shirts and trainers in which Rafa won each of the Grand Slam finals he has played throughout his career. As well as discovering close up the achievements of one of the best tennis players in history, on the exhibition level, visitors will be given a global vision of the history of contemporary sport thanks to the mementos and objects donated by some of the biggest figures in the history of world sport such as Michael Jordan, Fernando Alonso, Pau Gasol, Roger Federer, Mireia Belmonte, Usain Bolt, Serena Williams, Cristiano Ronaldo... and many more.

In addition, the Rafa Nadal Museum Xperience includes plenty of activities with varying levels of action that allow you to compete virtually with figures from world sport, to enjoy interactive experiences linked to the world of sport, games for all ages and the possibility of challenging family and friends on fun, interactive games adapted to meet the Covid-19 protocols set out by the health authorities. A significant part of the profits from the Museum go towards Rafa Nadal Foundation projects.

Also, by means of an initiative from Rafa himself, all residents of the Balearic Islands can enjoy a 50% discount at the Museum.

Max Basing arrived to the Rafa Nadal Academy in 2017 and since then you can see a great improvement in his game. Unfortunately, he had to go through a few injuries that stopped him a few times of playing at his best level of tennis but the beginning of the 2020 season was great for the English player. He started the year with the right foot after winning the first ITF World Tour match of his career at the Rafa Nadal Academy. He followed this first victory becoming the Champion of the Oslo Open ITF World Tennis Tour Junior in February and later winning the ITF World Tour in Mijas. Now he is looking forward to start a new adventure in the United States as he will start his college career very soon at an American University.  

What's  your name? Max Basing 

How old are you? 17

When is your birthday? 02/10/02

Where are you from? Surrey, England 

What is your favorite shot? Backhand 

What is your favorite Grand Slam/tournament? Wimbledon 

What is your favorite court surface? Hard/Grass 

Who is your favorite tennis player? Andy Murray 

What is your favorite movie? Blood Diamond 

And favorite TV show? Prison Break 

What is your favorite book? Rafa (Autobiography)

What are your hobbies? TV Series, football, socialising

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Of the more than 60 matches Rafa Nadal has won in Rome, one of the most memorable before reaching any of the eleven finals he has disputed there came against Nikolay Davydenko in 2007. Until then, he had won all 15 matches he had played in the Italian capital, but the Russian was ready to end his streak. For three hours and 39 minutes, the Spaniard had to battle it out on court to see off a stubborn opponent -then No. 4 in the world- 7-6(3), 6-7(8), 6-4. He would go on to win his third title against Fernando González a day later, 6-2, 6-2.