"We always treated each other very well" - Retired umpire Carlos Bernades opens up on alleged "beef" with Rafael Nadal

Spanish tennis legend Rafael Nadal was not the only tennis personality to retire in November, as long-time umpire Carlos Bernades also followed suit at the Davis Cup Finals in Malaga.

Nadal called an end to an illustrious career that saw him shatter several records, including ascending to World No.1 and winning an insurmountable 14 Roland Garros titles. The Mallorca native lost his final professional match as he represented Spain in their tie against Belgium, and was given a well-deserved sendoff ceremony after Spain was eliminated from the event.

The Brazilian umpire has been a staple on the tennis circuit for 40 years, becoming one of the most recognized umpires. However, one of his more memorable encounters came while he refereed one of Nadal's matches at the Rio Open in 2015.

The Spaniard realized he had put his shorts on the wrong way and wanted to change, resulting in him arguing with Bernades over the matter as the umpire refused to allow him to leave the court. Nadal was also hit with multiple time violations during that match. This led to the 22-time Grand Slam champion asking to have Bernades banned from his future matches because he wasn’t “respectful” enough.

"Yes, it was my request,” confirmed Nadal at the time. “I consider him a great umpire and a good person, but I think when you have some troubles with the same umpire, sometimes it’s easy to stay for a while away, no?”

Following Bernades' retirement at the Davis Cup, the Brazilian revealed that any beef was behind them and admitted he was sad to see the former World No.1 retire.

“We have that image because of the arguments. But we always treated each other very well,” he told AS. “He was always very respectful towards me. And this is something I will never forget. I was sad because he ended his career this way. I wanted to be there to see him.
“I didn't even think about refereeing him. I just wanted to see him because of the great work he has done for other players. He was very important for tennis."