The German tennis star wishes his former rival a good start to the new phase of his life.
A wistful look at the end of tennis star Rafael Nadal’s career? Not with Alexander Zverev. The German number one looks forward to the end of Nadal’s great career at the Davis Cup with positive feelings: “Pain is the wrong word. The career he has had is a joy for the tennis world,” said Zverev.
Nadal “gave everything he had for the sport. Probably even more than he could. The fact that he quits is his decision, and that’s completely fine,” Zverev explained: “He coined the saying ‘ “You should play every point as if your life depends on it, but you have to know that tennis is not the most important thing.”
Nadal retires from the Davis Cup
Nadal is saying goodbye to the professional stage this week at the Davis Cup final tournament – after over 1,300 matches, 22 Grand Slam successes and a total of 92 titles on the ATP tour. He is aiming for his sixth victory at the national event with Spain. After Roger Federer’s retirement in 2022, only Novak Djokovic will remain an active part of the “Big 3” that have dominated tennis in the past decades. “I wish him all the best for the coming week and then I hope that he can enjoy his life after tennis,” said Zverev.
The 27-year-old probably looks back on his own duels with Nadal with mixed feelings. In 2022, Zverev was seriously injured in the semi-finals of the French Open while in absolutely top form, and in 2024 he defeated the aging Spaniard in his “living room” in round one. For Nadal it was only his fourth defeat in the clay court tournament, which he won 14 times.
