Casper Ruud admitted he was surprised to hear about Rafael Nadal’s retirement.
The tennis world was left in shock when the great Spaniard announced he will end his career after the Davis Cup finals.
The 22-time Grand Slam champion will say farewell to tennis on home soil and he will be surrounded by his Spanish teammates.
Some of his fellow players such as Novak Djokovic will be in attendance, but will Casper Ruud also be in Malaga to pay tribute to Nadal?
Will Casper Ruud be at Rafael Nadal Davis Cup finals farewell?
Rafael Nadal has left a great legacy in tennis and left a lasting impression on all those he played and interacted with in the tennis world.
The 38-year-old has been praised for his unrelenting desire to work hard and play every point as though it were his last.
This will be illustrated on a tennis court for the final time at the Davis Cup finals, which commences on November 19.
As mentioned above Djokovic plans to be in attendance, as does Andy Murray, who retired after the Paris Olympics in August. But Ruud has confirmed he will not be in attendance.
“I won’t go. I have played and seen enough tennis during the year,” he told reporters at the ATP Finals. “I will watch it probably on TV but hopefully on the beach, quiet and just relaxed.
“It was inevitable that with Roger, him, Andy and then Novak being the last of those guys who will retire at some point but I think Novak said it will during the Saudi tournament, please don’t retire yet because he has so many fans around the world and even among the players
“One match which showed it quite clearly this year was during Roland Garros, there was a lot of players who came out to watch Rafa vs Zverev, because you don’t have Swiatek, Novak, Carlos coming out to watch the first round of a slam but when it’s Rafa it’s different.”
Casper Ruud admitted being ‘surprised’ after hearing Rafael Nadal’s departure
Plenty of players issued tributes after Nadal posted a video on social media announcing his retirement from tennis.
But Ruud, who was inspired by Nadal as a youngster and trained at his academy, admitted his shock with the former World number one’s decision to retire.
“It caught me a little bit by surprise that he announced it because I was thinking maybe that he was going to give it one more try during the clay next year,” the two-time Grand Slam runner-up said.
“But at the same time I know he has been struggling with a lot of pain and injuries and it tears you down mentally. At some point you call it a day and I think it will be a nice finish for him.
“It’s going to be sad, there will be some tears, and as a big fan myself I hope they make it to the final and we get to watch him for a few more days. I hope he has the kind of retirement that he deserves and I wish him the best for the next.”
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