noticias y fotos

Andrés Aberasturi Páez - My second day

Second day at the Mutua Madrileña Madrid Open and my initial feelings have been confirmed: this is a spectacle. Last Monday, the atmosphere was a bit calm but now, without a doubt, with Nadal’s first match, the tournament has revolutionized itself. It seemed as if it would be impossible for a space like this to fill itself up but today at 4 o’clock there was not one empty seat in the central courts.

The truth is that I am having a great time, the public in general is very receptive and always in a good mood. I was a bit unsure when I had to deal with the personnel so that I could take a photo of them to illustrate this blog, and to my amazement, all of them (the immense

majority) felt I was complimenting them and they posed as if they were in a wedding.

Today I have been thinking of two things that have caught my attention throughout this tournament: one is the mythomania, that need to see up close certain public figures. I have thought about it lately because I too found myself running very excited to Roger Federer’s press conference (someone whom I truly admire) simply just to see him up close in person. And I thought: but why? So I began to ponder. Deep inside I think we need a sort of conformation to tell us that they really exist, it’s silly but I think it is something along those lines. Obviously, we know that they are real people, we see them on television and such but it’s as if that wasn’t enough for us. We need to see them with our own eyes. That’s our confirmation that it is all true. It’s bizarre.

Another thing that catches my attention is the public’s powerful cheers during the matches. Personally, it is not in my nature to shout out loud like that, not even in a reunion of 3 people. And honestly, I get embarrassed a bit when, for example today, Rafa Nadal won 6-1 in the second set and the game was practically pronounced. Still, you heard someone yell: ‘Go Rafa!’ in a stadium with about 10.000 people in it surrounding him.

I wouldn’t know, but I think that in those moments, Rafa does not need much more encouraging. I don’t really understand that need to call the attention to one’s self. I like to attribute those sudden moments of outbursts with something I call the impunity of ‘crowds’, or the anonymity that presents itself to be one out of 10.000. In some way, this transforms us, in a negative way. I don’t mean to say that we shouldn’t encourage the players to play better. I can personify Toni Nadal himself at home as I watch tennis matches

on the television. I can criticize Rafa and yell to him to play his opponent using his backhand, but I guess that is a question of timing and knowing when to administer those encouraging cheers at the appropriate moment. On the other hand, I think I would not enjoy a silent court, the Madrid Open tournament has some life in it, similar to the bull fights, and the public becomes extremely excited. The crowd gets caught up in the moment and they live it as if they were the ones down there on the court playing tennis and that, discarding my own nature, is very funny.

I will tell you just a bit more, today is supposed to be a day consecrated to sports: I have just seen Nadal and in a while I am off to watch the end of the cup which I hope Athletic won (because of my Basque roots, not because I am against Barça which I think should win everything else).

I am anxiously waiting for Friday to arrive so that I can go back to the tournament and continue taking photos while I enjoy the spectacle.