5 Rafael Nadal superstitions the player is always seen doing

World No. 2 Rafael Nadal recently won his record-extending tenth title at Roland Garros last week. In that win, he extended his own record at the French Open, his record for most clay-court titles of all time, and the most Grand Slam singles title at any venue in the Open Era. He is now only three Majors short of the record set by Roger Federer earlier this year after the Swiss won his record 18^th Major at the Australian Open.

Nadal has certain tics or peculiarities that he must do on court each time; although the player is not known to suffer from OCD or Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder, he needs things to be done in a certain, very exact way before, after and during his matches – including by himself.

Here are some of his most well-known on-court tics:

Toweling off after each point

Sport is a sweaty business, and playing sustained tennis at the level that Rafael Nadal does, day after day, generating power every serve, requires energy. It’s a taxing business and when you’re standing in the sun for hours on end, match after match, you’re bound to perspire.

But while other players will usually towel off after a service game, Nadal towels off after each point.

Waiting for his rival to cross at the changeover

Rafael Nadal will never be the first person to cross the court at the changeover, when players switch sides. The World No. 2 will always, and without fail, wait for his opponent to fully cross over to the other side, then always step over the line first with his right foot.

That done, he will cross over the line. Every time.

YOU CAN WATCH THAT HERE.

Jumping....everywhere!

It’s important – essential, rather, for a player to keep their momentum going through a match, whether or not they are up on their opponent. That said, Nadal hasn’t really been down against any opponent throughout the French Open – and it’s not hard to see why. In surreal form and fitness, Nadal would no doubt want to keep the power going, and he often listens to music before the match – as many players do – to keep himself pumped up and ready to fight.

Nadal, however, keeps that going on-court as well. Right after he walks out on court, Nadal will jog in place, then at the net when the coin toss is due to take place, and again facing spectators before the first service game of the match.

Pushing his hair back waiting for serve

There is rarely a time that Rafael Nadal is not seen adjusting his hair, tucking it behind his ears, pushing it to the side – and he does this constantly just before he serves, or awaiting his opponent’s serve.

The headbands that the 31-year-old ace is often seen sporting execute that function just fine. This is another one of the Spanish ace’s tics that he does no matter what – and it provides him some sense of security or organization.

Arranging his bottles

Every single match he plays, without fail, Rafael Nadal will sit at his players’ bench, and every single time he will adjust the bottles a certain way. It isn’t just the bottles, with the Spanish ace not satisfied until the labels face exactly a certain way relative to each other – and to himself.

But Nadal has on various occasions denied that this is a superstition.

“I put the two bottles down at my feet, in front of my chair to my left, one neatly behind the other, diagonally aimed at the court. Some call it superstition, but it’s not. If it were superstition, why would I keep doing the same thing over and over whether I win or lose? It’s a way of placing myself in a match, ordering my surroundings to match the order I seek in my head.”