{"id":360206,"date":"2024-01-16T02:17:04","date_gmt":"2024-01-16T03:17:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sportinfo.pro\/?p=360206"},"modified":"2024-01-16T04:01:58","modified_gmt":"2024-01-16T04:01:58","slug":"nadal-roasted-for-inexcusable-partnership","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sportinfo.pro\/?p=360206","title":{"rendered":"Nadal roasted for 'inexcusable' partnership"},"content":{"rendered":"

Rafael Nadal<\/a> has become the latest high-profile tennis<\/a> star to accept a role in Saudi Arabia, as the gulf nation looks to increase its global influence through sport.<\/p>\n

The former world No.1 has been named an ambassador for the Saudi Tennis Federation after recently withdrawing from the Australian Open<\/a> due to injury.<\/p>\n

In a social media post on Tuesday, the 37-year-old explained his desire to help those in Saudi and believes there is plenty of upside to the move. \ufeff<\/p>\n

LIVE:<\/strong> Australian Open 2024 day three<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n

READ MORE:<\/strong> 'Shattered' Demon has 'revenge' on his mind<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n<\/p>\n

READ MORE:<\/strong> Gauff forced to clarify 'hideous' cartoon comments<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

"Everywhere you look in Saudi Arabia, you can see growth and progress, and I'm excited to be part of that," Nadal said.<\/p>\n

"I continue to play tennis as I love the game – but beyond playing I want to help the sport grow far and wide across the world and in Saudi there is real potential.<\/p>\n

"The kids here today are looking to the future and have a real passion for all sports. If I can help them pick up a racquet or simply get fit and enjoy the benefits of healthy living, then I'll be happy to have made a difference."<\/p>\n

The Saudi Tennis Federation confirmed Nadal will "spend dedicated time in the Kingdom each year to help nurture and plan the development of boys and girls in the sport as well as grow further interest in tennis amongst the country's young population".<\/p>\n

https:\/\/twitter.com\/RafaelNadal\/status\/1746969639488258212?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw<\/a><\/p>\n

The nation will host the ATP's Next Gen Finals for the next four years, which could disrupt the summer of tennis in Australia, with the potential addition of a lead-up event.<\/p>\n

In 2022, the likes of Novak Djokovic and Nick Kyrgios \ufeffwere among the players that took part in the Saudi tennis exhibition, boosting the profile of the country's plans.<\/p>\n

Saudi Arabia have been accused of "sportswashing" by using globally-renowned athletes such as Nadal to improve their international reputation, after widespread criticism for human rights and environmental issues.<\/p>\n

The move from Nadal has received plenty of backlash on social media, with his announcement labelled as "inexcusable" and "disappointing".<\/p>\n

https:\/\/twitter.com\/NeilMcMahon\/status\/1747071441429033313?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw<\/a>https:\/\/twitter.com\/tennisnation\/status\/1746971161546600891?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw<\/a><\/p>\n

Saudi Arabia \ufeffhave also begun to dominate in other sports and according to tennis icon John McEnroe, it could be a slippery slope for athletes across the globe.<\/p>\n

McEnroe has been vocal in his disapproval of the \ufeffgrowing impact of Saudi funds on tennis and shut down the idea of the WTA Finals being held there in 2024.<\/p>\n

"Let's put it this way: money talks," he told ESPN<\/p>\n

"Personally, I disagree with it completely, with the golf and the tennis.<\/p>\n

"The ladies are going to play the WTA Finals there? Are you kidding me? Because they treat women so well? That part to me is laughable.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

"At the same time, which is also laughable, is the people that can criticise tennis players or golfers for doing something that virtually every business and the government do, which is deal with Saudi Arabia.<\/p>\n

"This idea that tennis players have to set the moral standard, or golfers for that matter, when they're all making the money, it's a total joke as far as I'm concerned."<\/p>\n

The introduction of LIV Golf, which is backed by Saudi Arabia, has turned the complexion of the sport upside-down, while the continued push for boxing, UFC and WWE events in the country has divided opinion. \ufeff<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Rafael Nadal has become the latest high-profile tennis star to accept a role in Saudi Arabia, as the gulf nation looks to increase its global […]<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":298013,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[1],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/sportinfo.pro\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/360206"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/sportinfo.pro\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/sportinfo.pro\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sportinfo.pro\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sportinfo.pro\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=360206"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/sportinfo.pro\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/360206\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":360210,"href":"https:\/\/sportinfo.pro\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/360206\/revisions\/360210"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sportinfo.pro\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/298013"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/sportinfo.pro\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=360206"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sportinfo.pro\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=360206"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sportinfo.pro\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=360206"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}