A few hours before the start in Malaga of the Final 8 of the Davis Cupthe last tournament as a professional of Rafael Nadal, his historic rival Roger Federer He paid tribute to him with a long and emotional letter on social networks: “You have made the entire tennis world proud.”
“What an incredible career you have had!” the Swiss legend congratulated him in a statement published on his social networks. “You have made Spain proud” and “you have made the entire tennis world proud“.
Spain will open the quarterfinals of the final phase of the Davis Cup against the Netherlands, this Tuesday with the unknown role it will play. Rafa Nadal.
Rafa Nadal will open the Davis Cup quarterfinals facing the Dutchman Botic van de Zandschulp (80th ATP), this Tuesday at the Martín Carpena Sports Palace in Malaga.
“Come on Rafa! As you prepare to graduate from tennis, I have a few things to share before I get excited,” Federer had started his letter.
“Let’s start with the obvious: you won me a lotmore than I could win from you. You challenged me in ways no one else could. On clay, I felt like I was entering the patio of your house,” he added.
“You made me work harder than I ever thought I could just to hold my ground. “You made me reimagine my game, even going to the point of changing the size of my racket, hoping to gain some advantage,” he continued.
Federer, retired from competition since 2022, built with Nadal one of the best rivalries of sports history.
Converted in friends, They played doubles together at Federer’s farewell, at the Laver Cup in London in September of that year. The photo of both crying on the bench remained for posterity.
“It meant everything to me that you were there by my side“Not as my rival, but as my doubles partner,” Federer said in his letter about that moment.
“Share the track with you that nightand sharing those tears will forever be one of the most special moments of my career,” he added.
In two decades of career Nadal won 22 Grand Slam titleswhile Federer stayed at 20. Both were surpassed by the third leg of the “Big 3” from the best era of tennis, Novak Djokovic, the only one who will remain active and who has 24.
Federer recalled in his letter the impact that the appearance of Nadal: “After the 2004 Australian Open, I reached number one in the world for the first time. “I thought I was on top of the world.”
“And I was, until two months later, when you entered the court in Miami with your red tank top, showing those biceps and you beat me convincingly,” he added about that first duel against a 17 year old Nadal.
The two legends faced each other in 40 games with a balance of 24 victories for Nadal and 16 for Federer. In the Grand Slam finals, the Spaniard won six times and the Swiss won three.
Federer He also recalled his participation in the inauguration of the Rafa Nadal Academy in 2016.
“Actually, I invited myself. I knew you were too polite to insist that I be there, but I didn’t want to. lose it“, he pointed out.
With Djokovic confirmed in Malaga to say goodbye to Nadal, Federer He gives no clues in his letter about whether he will surprise his friend.
