"Magnify just how great he's been": Rafael Nadal likely for another send-off after drab Davis Cup says Mark Petchey
ATP
Rafael Nadal did what many sporting greats do and retire perhaps a bit too late to get their flowers. Despite apparently being his wishes, the Davis Cup was shunned by some as not being the farewell he should've received.
Mark Petchey spoke to Betway and believes that there will likely be another ending to the Rafael Nadal fairytale where he does get his send-off and that it would show big of a deal he is to the sport of tennis.
Speaking about a myriad of topics including Murray-Djokovic and Emma Raducanu, Petchey said on the Nadal tribute that there will likely be another more rapid one to show what impact he has had on the lives of not only those in tennis.
He lauded the great Spaniard as phenomenal for the game and that despite there not being an Hollywood ending anywhere that he perhaps deserves one better than the one he received.
If Carlos Moya and Toni Nadal for instance weren't a fan, it perhaps tells a lot about what he deserved but also despite that if the ITF worked off his wishes, they can only deliver so much.
“It’s not the time to blame anyone,” admitted Moya to Onda Cero. "But the feeling we’re all left with is a bit scruffy and shabby.
“It’s true that it’s a Tuesday night, but this is sport, and it was known months in advance that if Spain lost, Rafa [Nadal] would retire.”
“Unfortunately, these are not Hollywood scripts. At the end of the day, they're real-life stories. The ending wasn't quite what everyone who witnessed his triumphs would have wanted but I genuinely believe that they'll be another send-off that will magnify just how great he's been," said Petchey to Betway.
“I would imagine they'll be another rapid tribute that will feel more meaningful to all of us in terms of what he has done to our lives, not just to tennis, but to everybody's lives. It has been phenomenal to watch somebody that changed the game.”
Watch 'Rafael Nadal: End of an Era' tonight on Sky Sports Tennis at 8.30pm ❤️ pic.twitter.com/RwyInBvq7R
— Sky Sports Tennis (@SkySportsTennis) December 2, 2024
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