Former world number one
Novak Djokovic has stated that he ‘feels
bad’ for not being present to watch legendary
Rafael Nadal’s last match in
professional tennis. The 38-year-old, who is regarded as one of the greatest
player in the history of men’s tennis in the singles category, having won as
many as 22 Grand Slam titles, has recently retired from professional tennis.
His final appearance was in the Davis Cup, where he played in
the singles category, but unfortunately, his last appearance did not go as
planned as he suffered a defeat against Botic van de Zandschulp in straight
sets with a score of 6-4, 6-4.
Djokovic, who is regarded as the greatest player in the
history of men’s tennis in the singles category, having won as many as 24 Grand
Slam titles, has been recently quoted in a report stating that he feels
a ‘bit sad’ after not being able to attend the final game of his former
opponent.
“I don’t know if Rafa maybe didn’t want to make too much of
a fuss about it in order not to bother other teams, matches. I don’t know, to
be honest, but I feel bad that I wasn’t there,” said Djokovic. “Murray and I
planned to be there, we couldn’t fit the quarter-finals in our schedule, but we
were a sure thing for the semis. The ceremony, if you want my opinion, wasn’t
done properly. Maybe Rafa himself wasn’t sure whether he’ll play or not, if he
can play some more, and then maybe it was too late to do something bigger.”
Nadal finished his career with 22 major titles. He was the first
player in the history of men’s tennis to win more than 20 Grand Slam titles. Nadal is known as the ‘King of Clay’ as he won 14 French Open titles, which is the most in the competition’s history.