Rafael Nadal has revealed that he wants people to remember him as a good human being more than being a good tennis player at the end of his career. Nadal has won 22 Grand Slam titles in his glorious career, which is the second most after Novak Djokovic, who has won 24 Majors.
Nadal wants people to remember him for his good conduct and personality when he leaves the tour. The Spaniard has already revealed that the 2024 season will be his last as he has battled a lot with injuries in the last 18 months.
When asked about how he will want his career to be remembered, Nadal responded in an interview with Louis Vuitton, “At the end, what will make me feel really proud and happy is, when I leave this world, if the tournament directors, the people who work on the tournaments, staff, ATP, say good things about who I was on the tour or who I am as a person more than as a tennis player.”
The 37-year-old continued, “Because as a tennis player, at the end, we have the titles we have the achievements and that’s how it is. I achieved more than I ever dreamed about.
“So, for me at the end, the legacy as a human being, after achieving all the things that we achieved, I think for me, is the most important thing.”
Meanwhile, Nadal shared a great rivalry with Roger Federer. The two greats faced each other on 40 occasions, with Nadal winning 24 whereas Federer won 16. The duo took on each other for the first time in Miami when the Swiss maestro was ranked number one but Nadal caught everyone’s eye as he went on to beat him.
Despite losing that match, Federer described the match as a ‘really special moment’, “The really special moment was when I was world No.1 in 2004, we played in Miami and he actually beat me, which was maybe a surprise to some.”
“I had sunstroke, but he still beat me fair and square. That was cool to see the young players come up, with [Andy] Murray, [Novak] Djokovic also coming through at that time.”
The Swiss added, “That first match will always be very meaningful, even though I lost it. And it’s been a great rivalry, like so many great players. But Rafa, with his playing style and attitude on court at such a young age, was not like everybody else. You could feel there was something special coming for sure.”
Nadal will be in action in the upcoming Roland Garros, which he has won on 14 occasions.
