Novak Djokovic implored long-time rival Rafael Nadal to place off his deliberate retirement after defeating the Spaniard Saturday in what was prone to be the ultimate chapter of their storied rivalry.
“Do not go away tennis, man,” Djokovic stated in an on-court interview after beating Nadal in straight units 6-2, 7-6 (7/5) on the “Six Kings Slam” exhibition in Saudi Arabia.
He added that their battles over time had been “very intense” and informed Nadal he hoped they might sooner or later “sit on a seashore someplace” and have a drink.
Nadal, 38, introduced on October 10 that he would retire from tennis after the Davis Cup Finals in Malaga subsequent month.
Organisers of the Saudi occasion billed Saturday’s match as maybe Nadal’s final singles contest as knowledgeable.
Nadal stated Thursday he was not sure whether or not he can be match sufficient to play singles in Malaga.
Djokovic and Nadal — two of the game’s famed “Huge Three” together with Roger Federer — had confronted one another 60 instances on the principle tour previous to Saturday’s exhibition match, with Djokovic holding a slim 31-29 edge.
Their final encounter got here throughout the Paris Olympics on the identical Roland Garros courts the place Nadal gained 14 French Open titles, although Djokovic triumphed simply 6-1, 6-4.
Saturday’s match was additionally largely one-sided, with Nadal spraying errors and Djokovic wrapping up the primary set in simply 31 minutes.
Feeding off the help of the partisan crowd who brazenly cheered Djokovic’s double-faults, Nadal rallied to push the second set to a tie-break, reeling off winners and even treating followers to 1 final iconic fist pump earlier than succumbing to Djokovic’s relentless serving.
“It is nice to see him nonetheless preventing regardless that he is had accidents and struggles,” Djokovic, 37, informed a post-match press convention.
It was “a really emotional day, big day” as a result of it was the “final time I play my largest rival, Nadal,” he added.
“I’ve witnessed Andy Murray retiring this yr in Wimbledon, Roger (Federer) a couple of years in the past as effectively. And now Rafa, you recognize. It is powerful in a roundabout way to see them go, as a result of all of my profession, principally, I’ve performed with them.”
After being introduced with a golden tennis racket, Nadal in flip thanked Djokovic for the “superb rivalry” and “for all of the moments that we shared on court docket”.
– Saudi tennis push –
French Open and Wimbledon champion Carlos Alcaraz was set to tackle Australian Open and US Open winner Jannik Sinner within the “Six Kings Slam” ultimate later Saturday.
Saudi Arabia’s push into tennis took off final yr with its first ATP Tour occasion — the Subsequent Gen ATP Finals in Jeddah — and exhibition matches pitting Djokovic in opposition to Alcaraz and Aryna Sabalenka in opposition to Ons Jabeur.
The Girls’s Tennis Affiliation (WTA) introduced in April that Riyadh would host the following three editions of the Tour Finals, that includes the highest eight singles gamers and doubles groups.
The 2024 version shall be staged from November 2-9.
Earlier this yr, Nadal was named ambassador for the Saudi Tennis Federation.
The brand new function will contain “devoted time within the kingdom annually” to develop the game in addition to the event of a brand new Rafa Nadal Academy, the Saudi federation stated when the announcement was made in January.
The tennis world’s embrace of Saudi Arabia has drawn some criticism, notably from greats Chris Evert and Martina Navratilova who’ve voiced concern in regards to the kingdom’s file of human rights abuses.
Djokovic stated he didn’t know if he, like Nadal, would spend extra time in Saudi Arabia post-retirement however he stated he was focussing on what he described because the positives there.
“There’s at all times going to be criticism. You’ll be able to at all times deal with good issues or dangerous issues,” he stated.
“You realize, it simply will depend on the angle, like something in life.”
