"We even went out to dinner together, twice": Novak Djokovic shares reason behind having no friendship with Rafael Nadal

Serbia’s Novak Djokovic has admitted that he and the former world number one, Rafael Nadal, never became friends despite having a lot of respect for each other. Both players are part of the original ‘Big Three’, which also consisted of another former world number one, Switzerland’s Roger Federer.

The three players dominated men’s tennis for a good part of the last two decades, and each one of them went on to win at least 20 Grand Slams. Federer, who was the first to retire, finished his career with 20 major titles to his name. He was the first player ever to win more than 15 Grand Slam titles in men’s tennis in the singles category.

He was also the first to win 20 or more Grand Slam titles in the history of men’s tennis in the singles category. Nadal was the second to retire from professional tennis. He left the game at the end of the 2024 season after representing Spain in the Davis Cup.

Nadal finished his career with 22 Grand Slam titles. He became the first player to win more than 20 major titles in men’s tennis in the Open era. Fourteen of those titles came while playing at the Roland Garros, which is why he is also known as the ‘King of Clay’. Djokovic, who is the only player out of the three to be still playing tennis at the highest level, managed to overtake Nadal in the list of most Grand Slam titles. The 38-year-old has lifted major titles 24 times in his illustrious career.

Djokovic was recently quoted in a report by Italian media outlet Corriere della Sera, where he stated that, despite a respectful relationship, he and Nadal never became friends. Djokovic once again credited Nadal and Federer for making him the player he is. Djokovic also joked that he had seen Nadal more in the last 15 years than he had his mother.

"Nadal is only one year older than me, we are both Geminis,” said Djokovic. “At the beginning, we even went out to dinner together, twice. But even with him, friendship is impossible. I have always respected and deeply admired him. Thanks to him and Federer, I grew and became who I am. That will unite us forever. That's why I am very grateful to them. Nadal is part of my life. Over the past 15 years, I've seen him more often than my mother.”

Djokovic and Nadal faced each other 60 times in professional tennis. Djokovic had a slight advantage, coming out on top 31 times and suffering 29 defeats. Their first-ever meeting came in the quarterfinals of the French Open in 2006, where Nadal emerged victorious, courtesy of a walkover after Djokovic retired due to a fitness concern after two sets.

Their last-ever meeting, interestingly, came while playing on the same surface, in the same arena, but in a different competition. Both players faced off in the round of 32 of the Paris Olympics, where Djokovic came out on top in straight sets with a score of 6-1, 6-4. Djokovic, on a personal level, is going through an interesting phase of tennis.

The 24-time Grand Slam winner has played 41 matches in 2025 and won 31 of them, an awe-inspiring feat. But on the other hand, he has now failed to win five out of the seven semifinals in 2025. His most recent defeat came in the semifinal of the Shanghai Masters, where he came second-best against Poland’s Valentin Vacherot in straight sets with a score of 6-3, 6-4. Djokovic’s other four defeats in the semifinals came against Italy’s Jannik Sinner (French Open and Wimbledon), Carlos Alcaraz (US Open) and Alexander Zverev (Australian Open).