A few hours before the start in Malaga of the ‘Final 8’ of the Davis Cup, Rafael Nadal’s last tournament as a professional, his historic rival Roger Federer paid tribute to him this Tuesday with a long and emotional letter on social networks: “You have “I made the entire tennis world proud.”
LOOK | What time is the Argentina-Peru Qualifying match?
“What an incredible career you have had!” the Swiss legend congratulated him on the social network X. “You have made Spain proud” and “you have made the entire tennis world proud.”
Spain will open the quarterfinals of the Davis Cup final phase against the Netherlands, this Tuesday at 4:00 p.m. GMT with the unknown role that Nadal will play.
According to a large part of the Spanish media, including Cadena Ser and the newspaper Marca, Nadal will play the first match of the three that includes the tie – a second in singles and a third in doubles in case it is necessary to break the tie. The official announcement will be made at 3:00 p.m. GMT.
“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 beat me a lot, more than I could beat 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 one of the best rivalries in the history of sport with Nadal.
Becoming 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.
“Sharing the court with you that night, and sharing those tears, will forever be one of the most special moments of my career,” he added.
In two decades of career, Nadal achieved 22 Grand Slam titles, while Federer stayed at 20. They were both surpassed by the third leg of the ‘Big 3’ of the best era of tennis, Novak Djokovic, the only one who will remain active and which adds up to 24.
Federer recalled in his letter the impact that Nadal’s appearance had on his career: “After the 2004 Australian Open, I reached world number one 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 matches 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 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 I be there, but I didn’t want to miss it,” he said.
With Djokovic confirmed in Malaga to see off Nadal, Federer gives no clues in his letter as to whether he will surprise his friend.
