Some might expect a multiple grand slam winner such as Rafael Nadal to have a highly restricted diet, but Janko Tipsarevic’s has said otherwise.
During a comprehensive interview with Serbian website Sportklub, the former top-10 player spoke about professionalism in tennis. Tipsarevic finished every season ranked in the top-150 between 2003-2013 before suffering a series of injury setbacks. Speaking about nine-time French Open champion Nadal, the 32-year-old has made some intriguing claims about his previous diet.
“A long time ago, Nadal used to eat a jar of Nutella and drink like 3l of Coca-Cola daily when he was number 2, number 3 in the world.” He said.
Nadal’s alleged high consumption of coke may not be as Bizarre as it sounds. Camille Herron, who won the 2015 100km world championships, credits coke with enhancing her performance. The claims are a stark one to those given by numerous health officials over the sugar content in the drink.
Ferrer’s smiking habbit
Tipsarevic also spoke of David Ferrer’s former smoking habit. In recent years rumours have circulated that the Spaniard used to smoke on the tour. One intriguing incident occurred at the World Tour Finals, when Tipsarevic played Ferrer.
“Ferrer used to smoke, but he stopped 3-4 years ago. I remember before our match at the World Tour Finals in London – we were in the toilet peeing and he was doing it with a cigarette in his mouth.” He said.
Looking at life beyond tennis, Tipsarevic is open to coaching fellow players on the tour. He told Sport Klub that his previous experience will enhance his ability at coaching somebody. On the other hand, he refuses to teach anybody who smokes or drinks.
“I would never coach anyone that drinks or smokes, but everybody has a path. For instance, Ferrer makes everything up by practicing around the clock.” He explained.
“And there is less and less such things, players worry about what they eat, what they do a whole lot more. They started investing in themselves – there is no point dragging along a physio, fitness and a tennis coach if you are going to smoke a box of cigarette per day.”
Tipsarevic has withdrawn from this week’s Davis Cup tie between Serbia and Spain. The world No.94 has suffered a hamstring injury in his right leg. It is the latest setback in what has been a difficult past couple months. In February Tipsarevic only won one match in three tournaments.
