Jay Devilliers is one of pickleball’s biggest stars. But before he became a pickleball superstar, he was an aspiring tennis player. He also had an experience that few athletes can claim, which is serving as Rafael Nadal’s hitting partner.
Years later, he still remembers every detail of the session, which was during the US Open. He remembers every detail of the session, from the nerves of walking into Arthur Ashe Stadium, to leaving the court with blisters on his hands.
Devilliers revealed that he had no idea who he would be practising with until the last moment.
“They don’t tell you who you’re going to hit with. They just tell you the court,” he recalled, while speaking on The Kitchen Pickleball podcast.
“When they told me the court was AA, I was like, ‘What is AA?’ Then they said, ‘Arthur Ashe Stadium.’ I thought, ‘It must be a big name.'”
The surprise was even greater when he found out that he would train with Nadal.
Nadal was running late, and Devilliers was greeted by Nadal’s then coach Carlos Moya, who had a challenge of his own.
“Moya told me, ‘You’re going to hit with me for 20 minutes. If I think you’re good enough, you can play with Rafa,'” he said.
“It actually helped me calm down because I thought, ‘This is so cool. I’m playing with Carlos Moya.'”
After Moya was impressed, Devilliers trained with Nadal, in what was one of the toughest practice sessions of his life.
“I started having blisters. I’d never had blisters in my life, and I used to play five hours a day,” he said.
“My hands were completely broken after that.”
Despite the pain, he eagerly accepted Nadal’s request for an additional 30 minutes. He was also impressed by Nadal’s attention to detail. Every drill was designed around the opponent he was preparing to face.
Nadal also initially was reserved during practice. But after practice, his demeanour changed.
“During practice he wasn’t really talking much,” he said.
“But once it was over, he talked to me like he knew me forever. He was really, really friendly. A great guy.”