Novak Djokovic paid a heartfelt tribute to Rafael Nadal after his great rival retired at the Davis Cup Finals on Tuesday.
After Nadal lost to Botic van de Zandschulp, Team Spain was eliminated after Wesley Koolhof and van de Zandschulp triumphed against Carlos Alcaraz and Marcel Granollers, ending Nadal's career in the process.
Alcaraz, who played well in the doubles but could not overcome Granollers's very poor performance in the second set, especially, was devastated afterward. The 21-year-old wanted to honor Nadal's legacy by winning the Davis Cup Finals for him.
A retirement ceremony was held for Nadal afterward, which included a video that contained tributes from stars such as Djokovic, Roger Federer, Serena Williams, Andy Murray, and Andres Iniesta.
Djokovic and Federer were not inside the arena, though. One Spanish newspaper speculated that the pair were going to come to a planned ceremony on Friday since it was assumed Spain would overcome the Netherlands.
That did not happen, and only a small part of Djokovic's tribute was played in the video shown at the ceremony. However, the full tribute he gave was touching. The Serbian began by congratulating Nadal on his career.
"Rafa. First all, congratulations on your amazing career. Your family, your team, yourself should be extremely proud of everything that you have achieved throughout your career that lasted for more than 20 years."
"In the tennis locker room, we will miss your warmups, your sprints, your jumps, your incredibly competitive parchis, the games that you had with your team before your matches."
Although Nadal's retirement was a sad occasion, Djokovic said there is so much to celebrate and thinks his biggest legacy is being an inspirational figure for millions of people worldwide.
"We had a lot of fun times, sharing the locker room and, you know, I just hope that today, even though it is a sad day for tennis — even though it is a sad day for Spain and sport in general, that you are retiring — at the same time, I hope that everyone will celebrate your career because there is so much to embrace, so much to celebrate."
"I think, more importantly — and you would agree with this — is the the mark that you left behind in terms of the connection with the people, in terms of how you inspired millions of children around the world to grab a tennis racket."
"How you conveyed your passion and love for the game, how you carried yourself on the court. How you showed respect to your opponents, to the entire tennis ecosystem throughout the course of your entire career."
Djokovic was honored to be Nadal's rival for so many years and wished the 14-time French Open champion well with his charitable foundation, academy, and family.
"Your tenacity, your fighting spirit, the energy that you brought every single time, the strength, the power, is something that will be studied and is something that will be transferred to many, many generations that are coming up and aspiring to be like you as a person and as a great tennis champion."
"I’ve been very honoured and thrilled to be called your rival over the last, almost 20 years, we’ve played more than 60 matches. I have learned so much in our encounters and thank you very much for also making me the player that I am and that I was over the last 20 years."
"The tennis world and the sports world will miss the incredible energy that you brought on the court. My friend, I wish you the very best of luck with your charity foundation, with your family, with your Rafa Nadal Tennis Academy that continues to thrive, that continues to spread around the world where you will be able to spread the experiences and the knowledge and the passion and love you have for the game to the younger generation. Thank you very much and good luck my friend."