Rafael Nadal and Stefan Edberg - Justine Henin names her two biggest inspirations from men's tennis

Updated 02/09/2023 at 06:52 GMT

Justine Henin told Eurosport that Steffi Graf was an obvious inspiration for her as she looked to improve her tennis talents, but acknowledged that she looked to the men's side of the sport as well, when she needed inspiration. She namechecked Stefan Edberg for his reserved nature, and also pointed to Rafael Nadal as an example in professionalism and dedication.

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Justine Henin named Stefan Edberg and Rafal Nadal as two players from the men’s side of the sport who had helped her improve.

Speaking on Eurosport, Henin was discussing the US Open and her wider thoughts on tennis, and she was asked which men served as inspiration when she was a player.

“Not on the women's side, because we know Steffi Graf for all of us,” she began. “But on the men's side when you were playing, I've always watched a lot of men's tennis.

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“When I was a little girl, it was Stefan Edberg.

“You know, I've always been watching players that could control a bit, the emotions are pretty calm on the court. You know, my personality, I wasn't going for too many expressive players.”

She then picked out Spanish players for two of their qualities.

Henin explained: “During my career, I always followed a lot [of] the Spanish players, because also of the discipline professionalism, of course, Nadal [has] the discipline and the structure, and coming on the court every day with the same motivation, the same fighting spirit and the same attitude, good mentality.”

Nadal has sat out the 2023 season so far with little indication that a return is imminent, but he is one of the most successful players of all time, behind only Novak Djokovic in terms of men's singles Grand Slam titles won.

“I've been inspired a lot from all these players," Henin concluded. "Which is important for when you grow up in the tennis world. You need to look at the others and can bring a lot of positive things, I remember.”

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