Novak Djokovic (37) implored longtime rival Rafael Nadal (38) to put off his planned retirement after defeating the Spaniard on Saturday in what was likely to be the final chapter of their storied rivalry.
“Don’t leave tennis, man,” an emotional Djokovic said in an on-court interview after beating Nadal in straight sets 6-2, 7-6(5) at the “Six Kings Slam” exhibition in Saudi Arabia.
“It’s been an incredible honour and an incredible pleasure to share the court with you. It’s been quite an emotional moment today, we’ve been playing a lot of games over so many years.”
“The rivalry has been incredible and very intense, so I hope that we’ll have a chance to maybe sit in the beach somewhere have a little drink, reflecting on life, talking about something else.
“Thank you for what you have done, you leave an incredible legacy and we really appreciate it.”
Nadal announced on October 10th that he would retire from tennis after the Davis Cup Finals in Malaga next month.
Organisers of the Saudi event billed Saturday’s match as perhaps Nadal’s last singles contest as a professional.
Nadal said Thursday he was unsure whether he would be fit enough to play singles in Malaga.
Djokovic and Nadal – two of the sport’s famed “Big Three” along with Roger Federer – had faced each other 60 times on the main tour prior to Saturday’s exhibition match, with Djokovic holding a narrow 31-29 edge.
Their last encounter came during the Paris Olympics on the same Roland Garros courts where Nadal won 14 French Open titles, though Djokovic triumphed easily 6-1, 6-4.
“Thank you Novak for everything for all the moments we shared on court during our careers. It’s been an amazing rivalry,” said Nadal, whose men’s record of winning 22 Grand Slam titles was broken by Djokovic.
“In a personal way, you helped me go over my limits during almost 15 years. Without that, I wouldn’t be the player I am today. Congratulations for all the titles and amazing career to you and your team. I wish you all the best of luck for the future,” he added
After losing to Carlos Alcaraz in straight sets during his first match at the Saudi exhibition on Thursday, Nadal acknowledged his fitness level was well off the tour’s top players.
French Open and Wimbledon champion Alcaraz was set to take on Australian Open and US Open winner Jannik Sinner in the “Six Kings Slam” final later Saturday.
Saudi Arabia’s push into tennis took off last year with its first ATP Tour event – the Next Gen ATP Finals in Jeddah – and exhibition matches pitting Djokovic against Alcaraz and Aryna Sabalenka against Ons Jabeur.
The Women’s Tennis Association (WTA) announced in April that Riyadh would host the next three editions of the Tour Finals featuring the top eight singles players and doubles teams.
The 2024 edition will be staged from November 2nd to 9th.
