The comb that a spectator gave Rafa Nadal during his match against Michael Mmoh was one of the highlights of the day this Thursday at the Australian Open. After knowing Rafa Nadal's impressions about what happened at the end of the match, this Friday we learned the other version of the story, that of the spectator herself.
Under the fictitious name 'Lisa', The woman went through Neil Mitchell's show on Australian broadcaster 3AW and explained the reasons why he made this controversial gesture.“I'm not really a fan of Nadal. I think he's incredibly boring and does those rituals or taps of his (alluding to Nadal's actions before serving) all the time.”
'Lisa' explained that she did not want to see Nadal and that if she went to see the game it was because she bought tickets for the previous match at the Rod Laver Arena. “The only reason I was in the game was because I wanted a ticket to see the previous game between Coco Gauff and Elina Svitolina and I already stayed to see the bored Nadal. “
The woman claims that the fact that her photos have gone viral shows that, in her opinion, Nadal's matches are boring. “The fact that the photos have gone viral all over the world reflects how incredibly boring their matches are, because if not, why would we focus on one spectator?”
'Lisa' herself explained how the incident with Nadal was with these words: “Possibly I didn't do the right thing, but what can I do? What's done is done. My daughter wasn't too happy with what happened. I just yelled 'Get over your rituals and knocks!' while I was serving, and then he looked at me and that's when I made him the comb. “
'Lisa' also spoke of the treatment received by the security employees and assured that she will return to the tournament, although she will do it almost incognito for fear of being discovered. “The security personnel were very rude with me. They told me 'You have to go' and I said 'Why? I'm a spectator, I've paid for my ticket, why don't you let me talk a bit? ' In the previous game I didn't stop cheering for Svitolina, because she is one of my favorites. Also, I am very fond of tennis. I come to Melbourne every year from Sydney especially for the Australian Open and I am very happy that it was held this year. Also, I have tickets for the games on Friday and Saturday. I may have to disguise myself and not dress in aer clothes. Of course, I will be very quiet. “