A day back Rafael Nadal‘s relationship with Roger Federer came to the headlines after the Spaniard said that although they have a good relationship with the Swiss. But he wouldn’t consider Federer as a friend. And now Rafael Nadal’s relationship with Novak Djokovic has come into the limelight after Toni Nadal‘s controversial comment about his rivals last year.

Rafael Nadal’s uncle and former coach, Toni Nadal, indulged in banter with Nadal’s rivals stating that they must get injured to let Nadal play some good tennis after he makes a comeback. Bogdan Obradovic, the former coach of the Serbian Davis Cup team, didn’t take this lightly and came up with a reply recently.

Serbian coach responds to Rafael Nadal’s uncle’s earlier comments

Rafael Nadal made a comeback this year at the Brisbane International. But his comeback journey was cut short due to some discomfort in the same region where he had surgery a few months ago. He had withdrawn his name from the 2024 Australian Open. However, before stepping onto the court in Brisbane, Toni Nadal gave an interview to Majorca Daily Bulletin. He said, “Now, what we need is, we need an injury of Carlos Alcaraz, Novak Djokovic and maybe Daniil Medvedev. We need that many… a lot of problems and then Rafa can play good.”

via Reuters

Replying to his earlier comments, Obradovic said to the Sport that, “We have always been friends with Nadal and his team. We’ve always been friends. I don’t know if it was taken out of context if he wanted to be funny and missed everything… I see Toni as our friend, I don’t believe that he wishes us harm.”

Although Novak Djokovic didn’t have a good start to his 2024 campaign and was seen struggling with a wrist issue. Rafael Nadal recently heaped praise on the current world number one for his outstanding numbers. He even called Novak Djokovic the ‘best’ in the history of the racket sport.

‘He is a good person’ – Nadal on Novak Djokovic

While giving an interview to La Sexta, Nadal spoke highly about Djokovic. He said, “The image he projects is worse than what he really is. He is a good person, with his mistakes… but much better than what he looks like. When I see someone so successful, I don’t like getting angry.“

Rafael Nadal further went on to add, “Novak breaks the racket but at the next point he is one hundred per cent, that’s why he is the one who has achieved the most in the history of our sport. The numbers don’t lie, I would say he is the best in history. He has had a better body than mine and that also counts.” Do you think there is a major rift between the camp of the superstars of the game? Or was it just a controversy created out of a joke? Share your thoughts in the comment box.