Rafael Nadal works from home; interview with TVE

Rafael Nadal showed us a bit of his beautiful, luxurious summer house in Porto Cristo.

In the interview with Spanish television station TVE, Rafael Nadal who by the way looked really cheerful and relaxed, spoke to Lorenzo Mila and Rosana Romero about his days away from the tennis court, about his recovery, his return to the tennis circuit, etc.

According to Nadal, the reasons for his absence from Wimbledon were more physical than personal.

"My real problem is the knees," said Nadal.

So, that means the divorce rumour about his parents, could be untrue or doesn't affect him as much as his injury.

Nadal also added that the reason he had been playing without his customary knee strapping since Monte Carlo was because the pain had become too great -- not, as many assumed, because the injury had improved.

For those who don't understand Spanish like me, Nadal's website will provide a transcript with the highlights from the interview soon.

And speaking about Nadal's luxury home again, the world no. 2 has bought a house in a resort complex in the Dominican Republic.

The developers of the project, Bahia Principe Clubs and Resorts said Nadal purchased one of their residential properties in the Playa Nueva Romana development.

(Via Rafael Nadal official website, tennis.com)

Rafael Nadal & Xisca: Bermuda shorts, bikini & display of hawtness again...

Rafael Nadal was spotted together with girlfriend Xisca enjoying sailing and swimming under the sun in Palma de Mallorca.

Today, Nadal will have a very special interview in the afternoon.

The world no. 2 is expecting a visit from the Spanish TV channel TVE who will be interviewing the Spanish champion at his summer house in Porto Cristo.

The show will be aired tomorrow (Tuesday) on TVE1, right after the night news.

Nadal will talk about his days away from the tennis court, about his recovery, his return to the tennis circuit and much more.

Istanbul Cup: Partying in Turkey can be fun, even without booze

You've read about Vera Zvonareva attended the Istanbul Cup’s official opening ceremony that took place at the Archeology Museum.

Among the tennis players appear in this tournament are Anabel Medina Garrigues, Vera Dushevina, Aravane Rezai, Patty Schnyder, Timea Bacsinszky, as well as Turkish girls Ipek Senoglu, Cagla Buyukakcay.

The girls attended the ceremony which lasted three hours and ended with a concert by Eurovision singer Hadise.

And of course the girls know what they are supposed to do there - dance and have fun!


(Images via Istanbul Cup official website)

Could Vera Zvonareva be the "Mall Queen of Tennis"?

Roger Federer and Jelena Jankovic are some of the tennis players who have done it.

Vera Zvonareva joined them by making an appearance at the largest local shopping mall in Istanbul, Turkey as a part of a promotion event for the Istanbul Cup this week.

Now this is really weird because Zvonareva kind of remind me of Tiffany, the red-haired all-American teenage singer who promoted her songs by touring shopping malls across America back in the late 80s!

At the event, Zvonareva played tennis on a mini tennis court with Turkish player Ipek Senoglu and then signed autographs and interacted with the local tennis fans.

She also took part in the tournament's opening ceremonies at the Archeological Museum on the same day.

Thanks to IMG for the photos and updates.

(Images by Turgay Arslanturkoglu)