David Ferrer: "I like silent authority"

“

?

Ugh, no, I don't see myself as a

.

I liked it because it brings closeness, but I don't even know how this Twitch thing works…”.

David Ferrer (Xàbia, Alicante; 40 years old) says that he does not see himself following in the footsteps of Luis Enrique, but he does not lack resources.

He has been a professional tennis player for 19 years, then he tried the German Alexander Zverev's bench, then he took the reins of Godó and recently directed the Davis Cup Finals.

Now, increasingly detached from the player Ferrer and with a more executive profile, his career takes another turn and he talks to EL PAÍS after being presented as the new captain of the Spanish team for the next three years.

He speaks the technical Ferrer, relief of Sergi Bruguera and consensus coach.

More information

Bruguera will not continue as Davis Cup captain

Ask.

The players are happy and so are you.

How about the contact?

Response.

The first impression has been good.

They will not play until September [Spain has received an invitation to directly access the group stage], but I have told them which tournaments I will be in and I have told them that for anything they may need, I will be there.

The good thing is that I know a lot about everyone and their respective environments, and that always helps.

I am really happy to have this opportunity because the greatest emotions I have experienced in my entire career have been in the Davis Cup.

Q.

Can the fact of knowing them so well and sharing a friendship in some cases provide an extra stimulus in terms of commitment?

R.

I think that having played Davis and having lived it from the inside, just as they are going to live it, can contribute.

This competition has an added component that is the pressure of playing for a team and for a country, and there are those who accept it better and others who find it more difficult.

Above all, I will try to help them emotionally.

I think that knowing how they play and having competed with them can help in all aspects.

I would not have accepted this captaincy if they had not agreed, it was essential.

Leadership is that they follow you without imposing, setting an example, having a left hand and trying to convince

Q.

In the opposite direction, you are going to have to make difficult decisions, make discards.

A.

Yes, I'm going to do it.

In the end, when you assume the captaincy you have a series of responsibilities and you must understand that you are going to have to say no to players you know or who have been your teammates.

In the end, if you don't play it hurts, because everyone wants to play.

I have been a player and on certain occasions I have been left out, and it always hurts, but I assume that obligation.

I will try to do it with professional and sports arguments.

Surely I will have to make difficult decisions when putting one or the other.

P.

Go to the bench after your recent stage as a player and also go through the offices, in an interval of only three years.

Do you consider yourself restless?

R.

I like being linked to tennis, but at the same time doing things that I had never done before.

I have tried the experience of Godó [retains the position], before I was with Zverev for a year [between 2020 and 2021] and now I have enjoyed the experience of directing the Davis Cup Finals.

I like and it motivates me to learn new things, move and try myself;

This means assuming responsibility and I like responsibilities.

Fortunately, in everything I have done I have had the opportunity to answer yes or no, and in this case it is a privilege.

I will try to continue as always, giving my best.

Q.

What is more complicated?

R.

Each pitch is different, but on the track is where you experience everything with the most pressure, the most difficult.

Definitely.

In the end, when you are in an office or directing a tournament, what you learn is very important, but you also have a team around you, and on the court it is not like that.

There is no responsibility or pressure similar to being on the track.

Christmas?

I'm going to try to get him back on the team.

It does not have an easy schedule, but it has not been ruled out

Q.

To what extent can versatility help you?

A.

It's been a while since I retired, and now you have not only the player's perspective, but a different one.

This has allowed me to see everything from another angle, and at the same time see how the players have been growing and evolving.

When you are a player you are focused above all on yourself and your work, and now it is different.

Sport has changed, tennis has changed and everything has changed;

everything is faster and today's young people have another way of thinking.

Q.

You are used to reading.

Have you dived into leadership books?

R.

Yes, now I was reading

and I liked it.

But more than leadership, I like to read about self-help, nutrition, good habits...

Q.

In any case, what is leadership for you?

R.

Try to get them to follow you but without imposing, always with a left hand and trying to convince.

The best thing about a leader is the example that he can pass on to others and the fact that you can talk to others closely, but without barriers in between.

I like silent authority, as Tim Duncan [former NBA player] had in his day or even Rafa himself, who is another good example;

In the end, you followed him because he constantly set an example and that is essential when it comes to being a reference.

Ferrer, in the CSD during his presentation. Rodrigo Jiménez (EFE)

Q.

What is the x-ray of the good captain?

R.

I'll take a little of everyone.

I have had great captains like Alex Corretja, Albert Costa and Sergi Bruguera, who have marked me the most.

I prefer the tactics of the first, the closeness of the second and the intelligence and personality of the last;

Sergi gave me the opportunity to play my last game, in Valencia, and also so important... [4h 51m against the German Philippe Kohlschreiber].

I have learned and am still learning a lot from all of them, because I keep in touch, and if at any given time I have to ask for advice, I will.

Q.

Nadal's situation is delicate, he has not participated since 2019 and he is walking towards 37 years of age.

Does he trust his return to the team?

R.

I will try, of course, although it is in your power.

I spoke with him this Thursday and we talked a little about everything, because we have a very good friendship.

Hopefully it can be given;

The fact that he is playing in Spain [Valencia for the group stage and Málaga for the Finals, like this course] is a good incentive, without a doubt.

After so many years playing and the issue of injuries, he doesn't have an easy schedule, but at no time has he ruled himself out and he will have my full support whether he's here or not;

You have to take into account everything he has given to Spanish tennis, and if anyone is exempt from playing in the Davis Cup it is him.

Alcaraz has the material of a leader and assumes the pressure like very few;

Rafa, Djokovic and a few others...

Q.

And Alcaraz?

Are you ready to be a leader now?

R.

Yes, he has the material of a leader.

At 19 years old, he is the youngest number one in history and takes on the pressure like very few;

Rafa, Djokovic and a few others.

What he is achieving is because he is capable of assuming that responsibility and that pressure that others cannot assume.

He has a lot of projection and I think he's going to be a good Davis player.

He is very excited to play it.

Q.

Spanish tennis is in a moment of transition.

What horizon is guessed to redesign the team?

A.

We have an exceptional batch of players.

Logically, the youngest have to mature and grow, and this is achieved by competing;

In that sense, Davis is another story, it forces you to move quickly.

It is true that now there are fewer options to do it because the calendar is different with the new format, but very good players are coming.

There is Carlos [Alcaraz], of course, but also Davidovich, Pedro Martínez, Zapata, Munar…

Q.

And Martín Landaluce, 16 years old and US Open junior champion.

R.

Yes, of course, Landaluce too, but he is younger.

From what I have seen of him, he is one of those different tennis players, of the quality of Rafa or Carlos, but we are going to give him time because he has to take the necessary steps.

Thinking about him playing next year would be rash.

GUSTAVO MARCACCIO STRENGTHENS NADAL'S TEAM

AC |

Madrid

Rafael Nadal will have a new member in his technical team next season.

This is the Argentine Gustavo Marcaccio, 45 years old and trainer in his day for his compatriot Juan

 Mónaco.

“He has been working at the academy since April 2021 and I understand that he is a good addition.

It will surely help us a lot to continue on the path.

Welcome”, the 22-grand champion dedicated to him through social networks, when making the announcement official.

Marcaccio, retired since 2009, was a tennis player in the squad that came to rank 284 in the ATP

, in 2004;

then, in 2012, he led Monaco –a good friend of the Spaniard– to enter the

 of the circuit;

More recently, he was Gastón Gaudio's second in the Argentine Davis team, between 2019 and 2021. The new member of the coaching staff comes to replace Francis Roig, who has decided to take another path after 18 years with Nadal.

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