Novak Djokovic admits feeling 'bad' for missing Rafael Nadal's farewell match

Former world number one Novak Djokovic has stated that he ‘feels bad’ for not being present to watch legendary Rafael Nadal’s last match in professional tennis. The 38-year-old, who is regarded as one of the greatest player in the history of men’s tennis in the singles category, having won as many as 22 Grand Slam titles, has recently retired from professional tennis.

His final appearance was in the Davis Cup, where he played in the singles category, but unfortunately, his last appearance did not go as planned as he suffered a defeat against Botic van de Zandschulp in straight sets with a score of 6-4, 6-4.

Djokovic, who is regarded as the greatest player in the history of men’s tennis in the singles category, having won as many as 24 Grand Slam titles, has been recently quoted in a report stating that he feels a ‘bit sad’ after not being able to attend the final game of his former opponent.

“I don’t know if Rafa maybe didn’t want to make too much of a fuss about it in order not to bother other teams, matches. I don’t know, to be honest, but I feel bad that I wasn’t there,” said Djokovic. “Murray and I planned to be there, we couldn’t fit the quarter-finals in our schedule, but we were a sure thing for the semis. The ceremony, if you want my opinion, wasn’t done properly. Maybe Rafa himself wasn’t sure whether he’ll play or not, if he can play some more, and then maybe it was too late to do something bigger.”

Nadal finished his career with 22 major titles. He was the first player in the history of men’s tennis to win more than 20 Grand Slam titles. Nadal is known as the ‘King of Clay’ as he won 14 French Open titles, which is the most in the competition’s history.