Rafael Nadal is intense as a coach, according to US Open girls' champion Alex Eala

Alex Eala, the 2022 US Open girls' champion, was all compliments to the 22-time Grand Slam champion Rafael Nadal.

During her interaction with the tennis icon at the Rafa Nadal Academy, the Filipina mentioned that she found him humble and giving, and understood how hard he worked in his early years.

Eala revealed, as per Olympics.com, that Nadal was "really nice" to talk to and that he worked his way to the top of the sport.

"He's really nice. I told him, I'm sure a 15,000 that I won wasn't as big as his achievements and he said that, you know, once upon a time a 15k was everything to him as well. So you can see that he really came from humble beginnings and he started from the bottom and he really worked his way up," she said.

The 17-year-old revealed that the 14-time Roland Garros winner loves to coach and is often on the courts talking to young players.

"He's on the court a lot. He loves the work, you can tell. He really loves to coach. And he's very intense when he coaches, of course, he's someone with so much knowledge and so much experience on the tour so I've learned a lot from him," she said.

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"Ruined by constant problems" - Toni Nadal on Rafael Nadal's 2022 season

Rafael Nadal (L) and Toni Nadal speak during a training session.

In an interview with AS, Toni Nadal, who coached his nephew Rafael Nadal until 2017, revealed that the 22-time Grand Slam champion could have had a much better season if not for constant problems in his life this year.

"It could have been an extraordinary season, but it was ruined by the constant problems he had. The results were good because he won the Australian Open and Roland Garros, but it leaves you with a bitter taste in your mouth. At Wimbledon, he failed to play a semifinal when he was playing well and was a clear title contender, he also had problems in New York," he said.

He also mentioned that the former World No. 1 has had more problems in his career than the average person.

"An athlete wants above all to be well and play well, and also to win. My nephew has won, but he's had more problems than you can handle sometimes," he stated.