Novak Djokovic is the latest player to express his disappointment with Rafael Nadal’s retirement ceremony.
The 22-time Grand Slam brought an end to his illustrious career while representing Spain at the Davis Cup finals in November 2024.
Nadal lost the final match of his career to Botic van de Zandschulp as the Netherlands shockingly knocked Spain out of the tournament in front of their home fans.
A retirement ceremony was held for Nadal following the tie, but some fans and former players described it as underwhelming, and Djokovic feels the same.
What did Novak Djokovic say about Rafael Nadal’s retirement ceremony?
Spain were knocked out from the Davis Cup finals following a 2-1 defeat to the Netherlands, which marked the end of Rafael Nadal’s career.
The 38-year-old was given a standing ovation by the fans, received a special plaque and watched a tribute video that featured some of his former rivals such as Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic.
The Serbian had planned to attend the event, but in the end was absent as Nadal bid farewell to professional tennis.
Commenting on Nadal’s retirement ceremony at the ongoing Australian Open, Djokovic was not happy with how it went down.
“We were together on the court in Riyadh, that was the moment, a nice moment. I saw him play at Roland-Garros, we played each other at the Olympics… The ceremony, if you want my opinion, wasn’t done properly,” Djokovic said.
“Maybe Rafa himself wasn’t sure whether he’ll play or not, if he can play some more, and then maybe it was too late to do something bigger. I don’t know, really, maybe.”
Why was Novak Djokovic not at Rafael Nadal’s retirement ceremony?
Djokovic planned to be at Nadal’s retirement ceremony as did Andy Murray.
But the pair were not in the building when Spain lost to the Netherlands and Nadal’s career ultimately came to an end.
However, Djokovic has since said he and his new coach Murray planned to be at the Davis Cup semi-finals, when Spain had originally planned to have a retirement ceremony for Nadal.
But following Spain’s shock loss, the plan was thrown into disarray. “I don’t know the exact details as to how they envisioned the ceremony, but I know that the plan was to do it after the semis, if Spain were to go through,” Djokovic added.
“Murray and I planned to be there, we couldn’t fit the quarter-finals in our schedule, but we were a sure thing for the semis.
“Unfortunately, it turned out the way it did, what are you gonna do? More than that, I don’t really know, but I feel bad that I wasn’t there.”
Receive exclusive tennis news and updates twice a week to your mailbox
