When Rafael Nadal retired from tennis in 2024, an outpouring of emotion was witnessed across the tennis world – not least from his supporters.
Around 21 years ago, the talented 18-year-old Spaniard first made a name for himself, defeating then world number two Andy Roddick in the Davis Cup final.
Nadal, who recently hit with Alexandra Eala, went on to form part of the biggest and best rivalry the sport has witnessed, alongside Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic.
The trio, who contested 150 matches in total against each other, won 66 Grand Slam titles combined during their careers [Djokovic can still add to this total.]
In a recent interview, Nadal discussed the ‘big three’ and the impact Federer and Djokovic had on his development as a tennis player.
Rafael Nadal says Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic always pushed him to be a better player
While speaking to Jorge Valdano on the Movistar+ programme ‘Universo Valdano,’ Nadal discussed the influence of the ‘big three’ on the current generation of professional tennis players – including Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner.
“You go through phases. When you’re younger, you experience everything more intensely,” Nadal told Valdano, as reported by Punto de Break.
“Over the years, things soften. The positive thing about our era is that we’ve finished our careers and can go out to dinner together without any problem.
“This is something to be proud of. We competed for the biggest titles, but we didn’t take it to extremes. The rivalry stayed on the track, and our personal relationships were always based on respect, admiration, and even a certain friendship with our rivals. I’m happy to have been a part of this story.
“Without taking anything away from Sinner and Alcaraz, who want to do things right, I think we [the Big Three] have helped new generations understand that you can be a fierce competitor without hating your rival.
“You can have a relationship that isn’t necessarily friendship, but it’s still a good one. It’s a good legacy we’re leaving behind.”
Later in the conversation, Nadal discussed how he, Federer and Djokovic all influenced one another during their careers.
The Spaniard said: “We came after Sampras, who had 14 Slams. We, being three, not two, never had room for relaxation. The demand was maximum. We never stopped pushing each other. There was no margin to skip tournaments.
“That’s the greatness of our era. We were always in the final rounds competing for the most important tournaments. I don’t think one alone could have done it. I don’t think it changed much.
“The world evolves and playing style changes a bit. You hit harder, serve harder. I still believe in intuition, not playing like a robot trying to guess from stats. I discussed this with Federer, and he didn’t like having too much information.”
Rafael Nadal’s final Grand Slam title
Perhaps unsurprisingly, Rafael Nadal won his final Grand Slam title at the French Open.
In 2022, the Spaniard was seeded fifth at the event, behind Novak Djokovic, Daniil Medvedev, Alexander Zverev and Stefanos Tsitsipas.
Nadal began by defeating Jordan Thompson, Corentin Moutet and Botic van de Zandschulp with ease, before coming through a tough five-set contest in the fourth round: 3-6, 6-3, 6-2, 3-6, 6-3.
In the quarter-finals, Nadal defeated top seed Djokovic 6-2, 4-6, 6-2, 7-6.
In the semi-finals, Alexander Zverev retired injured in the second set tiebreak, with Nadal leading by one set at the time.
In the final, the Spaniard defeated Casper Ruud 6-3, 6-3, 6-0, winning his 14th French Open title.
After the final, Nadal was asked about his future motivations in the sport.
During the post-match press conference, Nadal said: “Well, is very simple to understand for me. I don’t know, sometimes for you it’s a little bit different. It’s not about being the best of the history. It’s not about the records. It’s about I like what I do, you know. I like to play tennis. And I like the competition.
“As I said couple of times in the past, and is not a thing that I repeat, is not the thing that I don’t feel for me, we achieved our dreams. Me, Roger, Novak, we achieved things that probably we never expected.
“For me, what drives me to keep going is not about the competition to try to be the best or to win more Grand Slams than the others. What drives me to keep going is the passion for the game, live moments that stays inside me forever, and play in front of the best crowds in the world and the best stadiums.
“That’s drives me, no? And the passion for what I do. Then of course if I don’t feel myself competitive, I don’t enjoy. So that’s it.
“But is not about, you know, is not about the goal about winning more titles. It’s about a goal to give myself a chance to keep doing what I like to do.”
