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Rafael Nadal's uncle Toni made headlines last week by announcing his new coaching partnership with Felix Auger-Aliassime. The Spaniard will be working with a player other than his nephew for the first time in his career.
In a recent interview, Toni claimed that the only reason he accepted the opportunity was that Rafael Nadal was okay with it.
"Well, you have to be very clear, if I'm here, if I accepted this collaboration, it's also because Rafael is OK with it," Toni said. "I'm the director of his Academy, so if he thinks it's not a good idea, I don't come."
Auger-Aliassime burst on to the ATP tour in 2019, and reached the top 20 as a teenager. However, the Canadian has failed to win a single title so far, despite reaching seven finals.
Toni Nadal's addition to Auger-Aliassime's team is a clear sign of intent from the 20-year-old. And Toni believes that Auger-Aliassime has it in him to reach the top of the men's game, assuming is able to beat the likes of Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal.
"Obviously, he has great potential," Toni Nadal said. "When I spoke with him and asked him 'Where do you want to go, where do you want to go?', I explained to him that it is not easy to be No. 1. For that, you have to beat 10 or 12 players of very high quality."
"We have to beat Zverev, Medvedev, Tsitsipas, Thiem, Djokovic, Rafael, Federer maybe," Toni added. "It is very difficult to beat them, but it is imperative that it is also difficult for the others to beat him. If he really wants to reach this top, then you have to do very good preparation for two years to improve everything."
"Rafael Nadal has won a lot, but it has never been easy" - Toni Nadal
Toni Nadal drew parallels between Rafael Nadal and Felix Auger-Aliassime too. The 60-year-old claimed it wasn't easy for his nephew to reach the top, but that he could get there because he never considered it impossible. Toni believes Auger-Aliassime can unlock his potential in much the same way.
"Rafael Nadal has won a lot, but it has never been easy," Toni said. "It's never easy, but it's never impossible. If the job is done, Felix can then become a very great player."
Toni will be working with Fred Fontang in Auger-Aliassime's coaching team, who he considers to be the "main trainer".
"He is the main trainer," Toni said. "Then when I am present, like here, or when we do visios, I give my opinion on what I see. I speak with the coach, I speak with Felix about my vision."
The Spaniard went on to claim that he will try to teach Felix Auger-Aliassime everything he taught Rafael Nadal, with the main difference being that he does not have "his whole life" to do it.
"For me, tennis is a simple game. Not easy, but simple," the 60-year-old added. "I think it's essential in life to figure out where you want to go. Once it's done, you have to know where you are and what you need to get there. This is what I explained to Rafael when he was young. But when I was working with Rafael, I had plenty of time, my whole life, to prepare him and see him get to where he is today."
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