Rafael Nadal and Andy Murray, both perhaps have just played their last match at the Roland Garros. They have been the stalwarts of men’s tennis for almost two decades now. Fans, families, and former tennis players are now recalling the fond memories surrounding these two tennis legends. Recently, Andy Murray’s mother shared an interesting story surrounding his son and Rafa. However, she was caught wrong-footed by her extra detailing of Rafa’s old habits.

Rafael Nadal fans didn’t look too happy with Judy Murray mentioning Rafael Nadal’s old habit of picking up his shorts in between matches. They feel that’s pretty much “unnecessary” to talk about at the moment. Here’s what Judy Murray tweeted recently, “When I first met Rafa he was 11 years old, playing in the Open Super 12 in Auray. It was his first tournament outside of Spain and he beat Jamie in the final. And yes he picked at his shorts back then too.” Nadal’s habit of pulling his underwear while getting ready to serve has come to the headlines multiple times.

The ‘King of Clay‘ is known for his bizarre tennis rituals. Recently during his time in Barcelona, he had a Q&A session with the Mexican tennis player Santiago Gonzalez’s daughter, Camila, and son Matias. The kids asked him several questions. And one among those was, “Why do you pull out your panties before you serve?“ The Spaniard laughed a bit after hearing this question and revealed that it is something that he has been doing since his younger days.

“Uf! This is coming from a long time ago. Comes from when I was very very small and it’s something that I’ve never been able to get rid of,” Rafael Nadal. Fans really loved that interaction between the kids and the tennis legend at that time. But now, they felt the 64-year-old Scottish lady could’ve just avoided mentioning that in her Tweet. Especially when everyone is a bit emotional surrounding Rafael Nadal’s possible farewell at the Roland Garros. Here’s how the fans reacted to Andy Murray’s mother’s recent tweet on Nadal.

Rafael Nadal fans are a bit disappointed with an “unnecessary” comment from Andy Murray’s mother

Judy Murray has always been a big fan of Rafael Nadal. She has time and again highlighted the immense competitive nature of the ‘King of Clay.‘ Once she had even likened the Spaniard to her youngest son Andy Murray, who himself has fought back from injury and adversity to keep playing the game he loves. But fans couldn’t really digest her mentioning Rafael Nadal’s bizarre habit, after knowing he has just perhaps played his last match at his favorite Slam. One of the fans asked, “Necessary to say he picked on his shorts?“

Rafael Nadal was defeated by the world number four, Alexander Zverev in the first round of the 2024 French Open by 3-6,6(5)-7,3-6. Everyone inside the iconic Philippe-Chatrier got a bit emotional during his on-court interview after the match. So, instead of speaking on that putting focus on something else made the other one say, “I wish you didn’t think it necessary to mention his shorts on a day when he has likely played his last match at RG.“

Rafa has several pre-match rituals. Be it taking a freezing cold shower just before the match, carrying one racket while walking onto the court, making a giant leap during the coin toss, sprinting to the baseline for warmup, placing the water bottles in the exact same positions, and many more. Adjusting his underpants before each serve is just one among many. A fan said, “We are all aware of his nervous habit. But was it really necessary to mention it at this point of his career?“ The fan took a jibe at her and added, “Is that the best memory you have? Not amusing if that was the intention. It’s preferable to listening to foul language and watching abuse being hurled at the team.“

Others also felt the timing of such a comment was a bit too awkward and they stated, “It was unnecessary“. Both Rafael Nadal and Andy Murray have enormous respect for each other. Nadal even recently praised Murray for inspiring a young generation of tennis talents with his immense passion for the game. So, this comment from his mother is a bit undigestible for some at this moment.

Some of them looked a bit amused to know this connection between Rafael Nadal and the Murray family. But they didn’t forget to highlight the “unnecessary” portion of the comment. One of them hilariously wrote, “Lovely stuff. And as for the shorts-picking, it’s too funny that the left-hand column of that report contains the word Nuts!” 

Share what are your thoughts on these comments from Andy Murray’s mother on Rafael Nadal. Do let us know if you think we have just missed out on some pre-match rituals of the great Rafa.