“Rafa Nadal has everything to be a great poker player”

What is Boris Becker doing in a casino in August instead of enjoying the sunny beaches of Barcelona?
Well, the truth is that I love poker. I have been playing poker for several years and Barcelona is one of my favourite cities: It has beaches and very interesting places to visit, as well. I have just arrived in Ibiza, where I have been for two weeks, a very nice place. However, my poker instinct has brought me here and I am eager to start playing the tournament (ETP Barcelona).

Five years ago, you joined PokerStars team to play as a professional. When have you started to be fond of the poker world?
I have been playing poker for a long time; I started when I still was playing tennis, but played another poker modality, the old-style (7 card-stud). Texas Hold'em is more modern and I did not know all the rules. So when PokerStars called me to join the team, it hired a German trainer to give me classes for a couple of weeks and learn more about the game. In my first tournament, I got to the final table of EPT Montecarlo and It was a great start for me. And since then until now, I do not play as much as other professional players, around 5 or 6 tournaments a year, all of them in the EPT Circuit, and Barcelona is a classic and I have been in previous occasions before.

Do you just play live poker or do you also play online poker?
No, I also play online poker a lot. Due to the fact that I travel a lot, I do not have much time or occasion to go to many live tournaments, but I always carry my iPad or my laptop and play several tournaments, such as Sunday Millions. For me, online poker is a great way of practising and improving my game.

Several top athletes, such as Michael Phelps, Gerard Piqué or Fernando Alonso have declared that they love poker and are regular players. Why do you think poker is so attractive for so many sportsmen?
I think all of them are very competitive, they are very good at what they do, even world championships, thanks to their incredible competitiveness, their wish to win and their discipline. All these characteristics are reflected in poker and are necessary to be a good player. Sometimes, when Fernando Alonso is in his single-seater, he has to play a bit, he has to know how to value the percentages and assume a calculated risk to take the right decision. And that’s the essence of poker.

Rafa Nadal has also joned PokerStars team recently. You have much more experience than him playing poker, What advice would you bring him?
First of all, I want to say that I am very happy due to the recruitment of Rafa Nadal by PokerStars, I think it is a great hiring for the team. He is an example in his discipline and a great person. I think the characteristics that make him strong in Roland Garros will also make him strong in a poker table: patience, perseverance, discipline, poker face, do not show your opponent how you feel, which is one of its main characteristics. Rafa Nadal has everything to be a great poker player. I am eager to see him in a table and be able to play together.