Recently Roger Federer shared his remarks on his personal friendship with Rafael Nadal. Rafael Nadal is expected to retire from playing tennis in 2024, finishing off a remarkable career.
Rafael Nadal won a record 14 French Open trophies among his 22 Grand Slam victories. The 37-year-old and Roger Federer, who announced his retirement in 2022, have a fierce rivalry. The legendary Swiss player claimed eight Wimbledon trophies in addition to 20 Grand Slams.
Nadal and Federer have faced each other 40 times with Nadal leading 24-16. Between July 2005 and August 17, 2009, they had the top two spots on the ATP Tour.
At an event, Federer talked about his friendship with Nadal: “We started respecting the rivalry. We almost miss it, playing each other every weekend. Back in the day, we couldn’t stand each other probably for that. He’s a great man. I wish he can come back one more time but he has shown the tennis world and the fans how good he is.”
Federer also talked about the age difference between the two: “I’m five years older than Rafa, so when I came on tour I saw young, junior Rafa come through and he was extremely good, very young. He was incredibly respectful and also very shy, he had an unbelievable respect for me.”
Federer discusses the evolution of his relationship with Nadal pic.twitter.com/tVohmp8fTQ
— The Big Three (@Big3Tennis) August 3, 2023
Rafael Nadal in 2023
Currently ranked no.139, Rafael played his last match on the 18th of January when he lost to world no.60 Mackenzie Mcdonald 6-4 6-4 7-5 in the 2nd round of the Australian Open (draw).
This year Rafael has managed to achieve a composed 1-3 match record.
