ABU DHABI // Rafael Nadal has backed Milos Raonic’s decision to add “good friend” Carlos Moya to his coaching team and believes the former world No 1 and 1998 French Open champion could be the catalyst to help achieve the Canadian’s dreams.
Raonic has hired Moya, the former Spanish Davis Cup captain, to fill the spot left vacant by Croatian Ivan Ljubicic’s departure in November.
Ljubicic has since joined Roger Federer’s coaching staff and Raonic, desperate to make up for lost time after an injury-disrupted 2015, has turned to Moya, who retired in 2010 after a 15-year career that included one grand slam title at Roland Garros and a trip to the 1997 Australian Open, where he finished runner-up to Pete Sampras.
“Carlos is an amazing champion and a great ambassador of our sport,” said Nadal after his 7-6(2), 6-3 win over Raonic in the final of the Mubadala World Tennis Championship on Saturday night. “He has a lot of knowledge about this sport, so for sure he will help Milos in some aspects. Carlos is a close friend of mine so I wish him and Milos all the best.”
Analysis: Rafael Nadal, looking like the warrior of old in Abu Dhabi, focused firmly on the future
Moya was the first Spaniard to reach the top of the ATP rankings since they were introduced in 1973 and he finished his career with 20 titles alongside a Davis Cup winner’s medal.
Raonic, 25, has reached as high as No 4 (May, 2015) in the rankings and, in reaching the last four at the 2014 Wimbledon, he became the first Canadian men’s singles player to reach the semi-finals at a grand slam since Robert Powell in 1908.
The Montenegro-born big-server, however, has much bigger ambitions and is hoping Moya will help him achieve them.
“It’s going to be a great complement to my team,” Raonic said. “I have a big team around me. Guys love what they do and they really want to help me dearly and he’s no exception to that.
“I think he brings a lot of experience and understanding, but at the same time, he’s going to work very hard with me on court. He’s also going to give me that kind of calm and peace in moments where maybe I can’t find it on my own off the court and before the important matches.”
Gallery: The best pictures from the three days of the eighth Mubadala World Tennis Championship
Raonic, however, is confident about his health, especially his bothersome back, as he starts 2016.
“I’m feeling great,” he said. “Actually I know I am definitely in significantly better shape than I have been in before. So, you know, I’m doing well, the right work, hopefully my body appreciates it.
“I’d like to do much better [in 2016] than I have in grand slams. For that to happen, I have to be healthy to give myself a chance to play good tennis.”
Making his first appearance in Abu Dhabi, Raonic was also pleased with his performance in reaching the MWTC final, beating South African Kevin Anderson before edging world No 4 Stan Wawrinka, a man he has failed to beat in four attempts on the ATP Tour, in the semis.
“It’s been phenomenal,” Raonic said. “It’s been sort of a premiere and premium way to set up 2016. You get three great matches against great players and it gives you a lot to build up off, a lot of insight.
“Hopefully things will keep going well through the first month of the year and maybe I can play Rafa [Nadal] again in a later stage of a bigger tournament.”
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MATCH INFO
Uefa Champions League semi-final, first leg
Bayern Munich v Real Madrid
When: April 25, 10.45pm kick-off (UAE)
Where: Allianz Arena, Munich
Live: BeIN Sports HD
Second leg: May 1, Santiago Bernabeu, Madrid
Sole survivors
- Cecelia Crocker was on board Northwest Airlines Flight 255 in 1987 when it crashed in Detroit, killing 154 people, including her parents and brother. The plane had hit a light pole on take off
- George Lamson Jr, from Minnesota, was on a Galaxy Airlines flight that crashed in Reno in 1985, killing 68 people. His entire seat was launched out of the plane
- Bahia Bakari, then 12, survived when a Yemenia Airways flight crashed near the Comoros in 2009, killing 152. She was found clinging to wreckage after floating in the ocean for 13 hours.
- Jim Polehinke was the co-pilot and sole survivor of a 2006 Comair flight that crashed in Lexington, Kentucky, killing 49.
NEW ARRIVALS
Benjamin Mendy (Monaco) - £51.75m (Dh247.94m)
Kyle Walker (Tottenham Hotspur) - £45.9m
Bernardo Silva (Monaco) - £45m
Ederson Moraes (Benfica) - £36m
Danilo (Real Madrid) - £27m
Douglas Luiz (Vasco de Gama) - £10.8m
The specs
The specs: 2019 Audi Q8
Price, base: Dh315,000
Engine: 3.0-litre turbocharged V6
Gearbox: Eight-speed automatic
Power: 340hp @ 3,500rpm
Torque: 500Nm @ 2,250rpm
Fuel economy, combined: 6.7L / 100km
The years Ramadan fell in May
RESULT
Norway 1 Spain 1
Norway: King (90 4')
Spain: Niguez (47')
RESULTS
5pm: Rated Conditions (PA) Dh85,000 (Turf) 1,600m
Winner: AF Mouthirah, Tadhg O’Shea (jockey), Ernst Oertel (trainer)
5.30pm: Maiden (PA) Dh80,000 (T) 1,400m
Winner: AF Alajaj, Tadhg O’Shea, Ernst Oertel
6pm: Wathba Stallions Cup Handicap (PA) Dh70,000 (T) 1,400m
Winner: Hawafez, Connor Beasley, Abubakar Daud
6.30pm: Maiden (PA) Dh80,000 (T) 2,200m
Winner: Tair, Fabrice Veron, Eric Lemartinel
7pm: Handicap (PA) Dh80,000 (T) 2,200m
Winner: Wakeel W’Rsan, Richard Mullen, Jaci Wickham
7.30pm: Handicap (PA) Dh100,000 (T) 2,400m
Winner: Son Of Normandy, Fernando Jara, Ahmad bin Harmash
Reading List
Practitioners of mindful eating recommend the following books to get you started:
Savor: Mindful Eating, Mindful Life by Thich Nhat Hanh and Dr Lilian Cheung
How to Eat by Thich Nhat Hanh
The Mindful Diet by Dr Ruth Wolever
Mindful Eating by Dr Jan Bays
How to Raise a Mindful Eaterby Maryann Jacobsen
The specs: 2017 Maserati Quattroporte
Price, base / as tested Dh389,000 / Dh559,000
Engine 3.0L twin-turbo V8
Transmission Eight-speed automatic
Power 530hp @ 6,800rpm
Torque 650Nm @ 2,000 rpm
Fuel economy, combined 10.7L / 100km
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Day 5, Abu Dhabi Test: At a glance
Moment of the day When Dilruwan Perera dismissed Yasir Shah to end Pakistan’s limp resistance, the Sri Lankans charged around the field with the fevered delirium of a side not used to winning. Trouble was, they had not. The delivery was deemed a no ball. Sri Lanka had a nervy wait, but it was merely a stay of execution for the beleaguered hosts.
Stat of the day – 5 Pakistan have lost all 10 wickets on the fifth day of a Test five times since the start of 2016. It is an alarming departure for a side who had apparently erased regular collapses from their resume. “The only thing I can say, it’s not a mitigating excuse at all, but that’s a young batting line up, obviously trying to find their way,” said Mickey Arthur, Pakistan’s coach.
The verdict Test matches in the UAE are known for speeding up on the last two days, but this was extreme. The first two innings of this Test took 11 sessions to complete. The remaining two were done in less than four. The nature of Pakistan’s capitulation at the end showed just how difficult the transition is going to be in the post Misbah-ul-Haq era.
New schools in Dubai
