(Video) “Not easy to be close to each other,” Novak Djokovic reflects on ‘intense’ rivalry with Rafael Nadal after their match at Six Kings Slam
Novak Djokovic met Rafael Nadal for the last time on the court when they squared off at the Six Kings Slam exhibition event in Riyadh.
Follow Us
Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal (Image via X)
Novak Djokovic played Rafael Nadal for the last time in his career. They clashed on Saturday (October 19) at The Venue in the Six Kings Slam exhibition event in Riyadh. Djokovic won the first set, and Nadal tried to force a comeback, but in the end, the retiring legend lost it 6-2, 7-6 after battling it out for 90 minutes.
After the match, Djokovic sent an emotional message to Nadal as he reminisced about the time they first locked horns. In another interview, Djokovic talked about the time he got to know Nadal more closely.
We had a lot of fun in actually in Colombia when we played a match there, in 2011. And that was the first time I got to know him a little bit off the court, you know, privately. You have got to spend some time at dinners, and you know some private time, chats about life, about tennis, about different things you know.
Novak Djokovic said on DAZN
Djokovic also reiterated that even though he has the utmost respect for Nadal, being close friends with him is difficult because of their rivalry.
We played every single year for the last 19-20 years many times, and I mean no other rivalry had so many matches in the history of tennis. Very intense. And it’s not easy to be close to each other. That is why I said on the court that, hopefully, we will have a chance to have more heat on the beach and just relax and reflect on everything from a little bit more of a relaxed perspective.
Novak Djokovic added
Watch the video here:
Novak Djokovic interview following his last match vs Rafael Nadal at the "6 Kings Slam" event. pic.twitter.com/YE8G4aOeob
— asud (@asud683385) October 19, 2024
Novak Djokovic met 60 times in official matches
Excluding the exhibition events, Novak Djokovic has met Rafael Nadal 60 times in his career. Before beating the Spaniard in the Six Kings Slam, Djokovic was the reason behind Nadal’s elimination from the singles matches at the Paris Olympics.
In those 60 matches where they mostly met in the finals and semifinals, Djokovic won 31 of them, while Nadal won 29. The last time they clashed on the ATP Tour was in the 2022 French Open quarterfinals. Nadal, as expected, won the match before storming past Casper Ruud in the final to take home his record 14 French Open.
The 2022 French Open was Nadal’s last Grand Slam title as well. After the Davis Cup, the 38-year-old will retire with 22 major trophies, the second most in the history of men’s tennis.
Stay Updated!
Gouri Das
(4784 Articles Published)