![Nadal poses with a group of children at the Mahd Academy in Riyadh on December 10.](https://imagenes.elpais.com/resizer/v2/OXEQFRGRTNHDXJPL3AX4EKIGAA.jpg?auth=25022be118a72f14d7257f1bf14c12b77dfa030a54db2820d8f95eb26260068b&width=414&height=233&focal=1310%2C845)
Nadal, the icing on Saudi Arabia’s geostrategical sporting cake
The recruitment of the Spaniard as ambassador reflects the country’s ambitious expansion plan, which aims to use tennis to boost the image-cleansing process it has embarked on with the spectacles of football, golf and Formula 1