Jiri Lehecka shares what he asked Rafael Nadal to do instead of swapping shirts after meeting in Madrid

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Jiri Lehecka has shared what he asked Rafael Nadal to do after he knocked him out of the Madrid Open yesterday.

Nadal has played some good tennis at the tournament but it was perhaps his moment with Pedro Cachin that has caught the most media attention.

After he’d defeated the Argentine he was asked by the lower-ranked player for one of his shirts.

The Tennis Channel journalist David Law didn’t agree with it – but his comment was dismissed by Nick Kyrgios.

Regardless of what people thought of the unusual request from Cachin, it certainly ensured that he grabbed some headlines.

Now, Lehecka has explained what he actually asked Nadal for instead of one of his shirts.

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Jiri Lehecka explains what he asked Rafael Nadal for after Madrid Open win

Well, this was a big win for the Czech player. He overcame Nadal 7-5, 6-4 and now faces Daniil Medvedev in the last eight.

After the game, it wasn’t Lehecka’s style to ask for one of Nadal’s shirts but he did ask for something and now he’s revealed all.

He told Madrid Open Press: “But for me, I would not do such a thing. I would do this maybe after the whole tournament, after, when I see him somewhere, just asking for a photo like I did after our practice.

“This is what I did, because, of course, I didn’t know if I would have a chance to play with him again or if we would play a match together. That’s why I asked Rafa to take a picture with me after our practice earlier this week.

“But if we are speaking about him giving me a T-shirt, I mean, I don’t know, I just don’t go into a match with these kind of intentions, and I just have a different approach in this thing.”

Lehecka now has a good chance to progress

Facing Medvedev won’t be easy by any stretch but after beating the King of Clay there is every chance that he could have a good run here.

The 22-year-old has only won one career title to date but time is on his side when it comes to claiming a few more.

In terms of majors Lehecka has reached the quarter-final of the Australian Open and round four of Wimbledon.

The challenge for the rest of the year will be to keep reaching the business end of tournaments and giving the top players a tough time.

Lehecka looks like the sort of player who isn’t fazed by facing the top players and these comments about his meeting with Nadal should serve him quite well.