Nadal happy in Spain despite high tax burden
La Coruña (Spain), Feb 8 (IANS) Tennis star Rafael Nadal told Spanish bank Banco Sabadell’s customers in this northwestern city that living in Spain did not make sense from a tax standpoint, but he was happy in his homeland.
“In terms of managing assets, perhaps it would be better to go to another country with more beneficial conditions, but Spain is where I’m happy, with my family and friends,” he said.
“In another country, I would have double the money but be only half as happy. Money doesn’t buy happiness,” the 30-year-old Nadal told more than 1,000 people attending the event at the Palexco Auditorium here on Tuesday, reports Efe.
Nadal, the world No.6, said he enjoyed “a five-hour match,” like the semi-finals and finals at the Australian Open, more than matches that were over “in an hour” and the outcome was known after two sets.
“I’d like (to close out matches faster), but I don’t know. The long and exciting matches are the ones that you’re happy to have played. A five-hour match is much more satisfying than a one-hour one,” said Nadal, who has won 14 Grand Slam singles titles.
Nadal said he was happy about his performance at the Australian Open, the year’s first Grand Slam event, but was still recovering from the effects of spending an entire month Down Under.
“What I’m the happiest about is that I’m competing on the court and I enjoyed myself in all the matches and played at a high level,” Nadal said.
The Spanish tennis star acknowledged that there were “times” in 2015 when he was not enjoying himself, felt “more anxiety” and could not “control the nerves and the tension”.
“It’s hard to explain. Whether having won or lost, I would get back to my room and think: You’ve won practically everything, why get nervous. You mulled it over and the next day, the same thing. Competition changes you,” Nadal said.
The southpaw said his loss to Swiss star Roger Federer in the Australian Open last month did not affect him negatively.
“I ended up happy because I know I took a really big step,” Nadal said.
