“He is my most important rival”: Novak Djokovic expresses desire to face Rafael Nadal ‘one or two’ time before his retirement

Serbia’s legendary tennis star Novak Djokovic has expressed his desire to face the former world number one Rafael Nadal ‘one or two’ times before his retirement. Both players are regarded as two of the greatest players in the history of men’s tennis in the singles category.

Nadal has struggled with injury concerns in the last couple of years. It was because of this reason he ended up missing three out of four Grand Slams in 2023. During his time off the court, the 22-time Grand Slam winner announced that the 2024 season would be his last. Nadal returned to professional tennis at the start of 2024 where once again he got injured in the Brisbane International and was subsequently ruled out of action for four months.

Djokovic, during the Laureus Awards, while talking to the media, expressed his desire to face Nadal at least ‘one or two’ times before the end of his career. "I have a lot of respect for a legend like him, with whom I hope to be able to play at least one more time before he retires," said Djokovic. "I have a lot of respect for Rafa, he is a good person and a legend of our sport, he is my most important rival. In Australia, I said I hoped to see him in one or two tournaments and I hope to do that.”