Carlos Bernardes was not always Rafael Nadal's favorite umpire, but the now-retired official insists the former ATP No. 1 always treated him respectfully.
Nadal and Bernardes retired from their respective roles at the end of the 2024 season. The Spaniard's final singles match was a defeat against Botic van de Zandschulp in the quarterfinal of the Davis Cup Finals.
Although Carlos Alcaraz won Team Spain's other singles match, he and Marcel Granollers lost in the doubles against Wesley Koolhof and Botic van de Zandschulp to confirm Spain's exit and the end of Nadal's career.
During Nadal's retirement ceremony afterward, the 38-year-old said he hoped to be remembered as a good person from a small village in Mallorca and not just for his numerous statistical achievements.
The class Nadal conducted himself with means he will achieve that goal. His uncle and former coach, Toni Nadal, thinks he and Roger Federer earned a higher level of respect than Novak Djokovic because of how they acted on the court.
A very rare example of Nadal getting angry was in the 2015 Rio Open semifinal against Fabio Fognini. After leaving the court between sets, the former world No. 1 realized he had put his shorts on backwards.
Nadal asked Bernardes, the umpire for that match, for permission to go off-court and change. Surprisingly, the Brazilian said no and told the tennis legend he would have to do it on-court with the cameras rolling.
An irate Nadal complained about that decision. The 22-Grand Slam champion told Bernardes he would work to prevent him from umpiring any of his matches in the future.
"Let me tell you something, seriously. I'm going to ask not to be umpired by you again, I can't cope with you. You're the umpire who pulls me up most and puts the most pressure on me on the whole tour. I have nothing against you, but I've had enough."
The ATP granted Nadal's request, and Bernardes did not umpire him for a few years. However, the Brazilian irritated Nadal again at the 2018 Wimbledon Championships by giving the 14-time French Open a time violation for not being ready quickly enough after his pre-match warm-up.
Although slightly unhappy, Nadal did not complain much after the Wimbledon violation. Bernardes told AS that the Spaniard always treated him respectfully, and he appreciated that.
"Yes, we have that image because of the arguments. But we always treated each other very well. 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. I think there are no words to describe these guys who are there now finishing their careers."
"Like Federer, who has already stopped, Nadal, Murray... They changed world tennis. I think there has never been so much passion as in this period. That stress with Djokovic, who is still playing. For me it was an honour to be able to work in this era."
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