Before Rafael Nadal has his last dance at the Davis Cup Finals, tennis fans are wondering if there is a way to catch a fleeting summary of the outgoing legend’s major career moments. Well, summarizing an action-filled career spanning 23 years in a tournament is nearly impossible, but there is a good possibility of the occurrence of some moments and matches with a ring similar to that of Rafa’s history. The upcoming 6 Kings Slam might have one of those matches and Rafa recently spoke about it.

Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic are two of the six players playing the 6 Kings Slam, currently underway in Riyadh. The two are getting byes to the semis directly. That means they only need to win one match in order to stand across from each other in the finals. Other players you will find in action in Riyadh are Carlos Alcaraz, Jannik Sinner, Holger Rune, and Daniil Medvedev. During an interview with DAZN Sport, the presenter asked Rafa if he’s looking forward to potentially playing against his long-time rival, Novak Djokovic.

Rafa responded, saying, “We play plenty of times. We don’t need to play a game. But, (Novak) have always been a big challenge, a great rival. It’s a player that have been always pushing me at the highest level – going through the limits.” Rafa continued, “Both of us with Roger too. We push ourselves to the next level – because the opponent in front have been always very strong and we need to be all the time improving, improving, improving, to be able to keep competing  at a level that we need to keep having success.”

The legends have faced each other in 60 contests, with Djokovic leading with a slight margin of 2 victories. The last time they met was at the Olympics(R32), where Djokovic had an easy victory. Olympics aside, their last match of a regular ATP Tour was in 2022 at Roland Garros QFs. One hell of a match, that was! The battle lasted over 4 hours with Nadal pulling it off, eventually. Could 6 Kings Slam see something similar? Who wouldn’t go berserk over that?

This might be the last time Nadal vs Djokovic happens. And the Serb also appears to be dropping hints that it’s time for him to draw the curtain.

Is Novak Djokovic also hinting at retirement after Rafael Nadal’s announcement?

Of the Big 3, Novak Djokovic was always the odd one out. He has highlighted it a couple of times that tennis rivals can’t be friends. In an interview with Corriere Della Sera, Djokovic said, “Even with him (Nadal), friendship is impossible. I have always respected and greatly admired him… We have never been friends. Between rivals, it is not possible, but we have never been enemies.”

No doubt Djokovic has a great deal of respect for his contemporaries, but his meaning of friendship is probably a little different. The 24-time major champion has often expressed his downheartedness over the retirement of his colleagues, as he did in the case of Rafa. After Rafa’s announcement, Djokovic highlighted he was feeling left out, saying, “I don’t know what to make of it. I still enjoy competing, but part of me left with them (Roger, Andy, and Rafa). A big part of me.” Is that a hint he is next?

In a media interaction during his Sofia Open exhibit match with Grigor Dimitrov, Djokovic dropped the strongest hint at retirement. The Serb said, “For the first time in my career, I don’t have any long-term plans. I live in the moment and I’ll see what happens. I’m going to play in Sofia against Grigor, then in China, and then in an exhibition tournament in Saudi Arabia. After that, I don’t know. We’ll see how I feel and we’ll judge.” The Serb also said he wanted to play for his nation and that he was “done” with ATP finals and most of the other tournaments in his career.

The last of the Big 3 is the only one now who reminds us of probably the most intense era of tennis. We’ll cross that bridge when we get there. Meanwhile, let’s enjoy these games that seem right around the corner.