Djokovic: "The rivalry with Rafa Nadal is very special and continues"

TEL AVIV, 28 Sep. (STATS Perform/dpa/EP) -

The Serbian tennis player Novak Djokovic is clear that, like last Friday with the Swiss Roger Federer, he would love it if his "greatest rivals" were with him on the day of his retirement, and he assured that without the one from Basel, he is the Spaniard Rafa Nadal with whom he has "a very special rivalry".

"It was a very moving moment, very emotional. Seeing his children and his family also moved me. I must also say that I was thinking about how I would look when I said goodbye to tennis," Djokovic confessed to the media before his debut this Thursday in the Tel Aviv tournament.

In this sense, the winner of 21 Grand Slams acknowledged that there is "one thing" that he would also like on that hypothetical day. "Besides, of course, my family and close people in my life, I would love to have my biggest rivals and competitors there because it added something more special, it added more importance to that moment," he stressed.

Now, with Roger Federer already retired, the one from Belgrade did not hide that the Spanish Rafa Nadal is still his biggest rival. "We played the most matches against each other of any rivalry in tennis history. The rivalry is very special and it continues," he admitted.

"Hopefully, we will have the opportunity to play against each other more times because it is exciting for us and also for tennis and sports fans around the world," added Djokovic.