Rafael Nadal‘ is back for the clay court swing after injuries sidelined him last year, following his exit from Brisbane International. Showing notable improvement in his form at the Madrid Open, the ‘King of Clay’ entered the round of 64 clash against Alex De Minaur. Nadal not only stunned the crowd at Manolo Santana but also the ones watching across the world, especially his dear friend Ben Stiller, who “once died inside” while playing with El Nino.

The ‘Night at the Museum’ star who couldn’t catch the live action in Madrid showed support for Rafa with a special tweet. Stiller wrote, “#RAFA💪🏽” and expressed his excitement about Nadal regaining the form that he possessed during his prime years. Despite not being physically present in the stands, the celebrity proved that he had all his focus on the match. It was an emotional win for Nadal as he scored his first Top 20 win since November 2022. The Spaniard beat De Minaur in straight sets 7-6(6), 6-3. However, this tweet was just another addition to Ben Stiller’s fandom chronicles for Rafa.

Ben Stiller is one of the biggest fans of the Spaniard, as he has taken moments to reveal his admiration as well as to spend time with the legend. He has made several appearances during Rafa’s matches around the world. Not just the good times but even when Nadal had to go through a real struggle when he called off his participation in Brisbane because of a knee injury, Ben Stiller wished him a rapid recovery and wrote on X, “Wishing Rafa all the best and a good and speedy recovery.”

Rafa and Stiller have been friends for almost a decade now. Recalling the moment they met for the first time, Stiller mentioned his ’embarrassing moment’.

Little Argentine girl made Ben Stiller realize he couldn’t play tennis

In 2013, during an exhibition match at Madison Square Garden in New York, Rafal Nadal was playing Argentinian Juan Martín del Potro. Midway through the game, Nadal picked Stiller out from the crowd to play doubles with him against Potro and his handpicked partner: a 9-year-old kid! Stiller felt humiliated as he was absent for most of the play and the little girl outperformed him.

Recalling this incident on an episode on the Jimmy Fallon Show, Stiller said, ““So Nadal serves it and the girl hits it back perfectly across the net, the crowd cheers. It comes to me, boom, right into the net. Basically we played four more points, every time the girl hits it, every time I hit it back into the net. And Del Potro puts the girl on his shoulders, they’re cheering. I didn’t make eye contact with Nadal, my wife, anybody.” The highlight reel was Ben hitting the ball into the net from a Potro return.

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Despite Stiller’s abysmal performance, a friendship was forged. Whether it’s attending the crucial matches that Rafael Nadal plays or having a lavish dinner with him, the Hollywood celebrity never misses a moment to seize the golden moments that can be spent with the Spaniard.