Carlos Sainz Pens Encouraging Message to Compatriot Rafael Nadal As Tennis Icon Approaches 14th Title

Published 06/03/2022, 7:43 AM EDT

The Ferrari driver Carlos Sainz congratulated the Spanish tennis superstar Rafael Nadal on his exploits at the French Open. The ‘King of Clay’ defeated the ATP Number One Novak Djokovic in QF to take a step closer to his 14th French Open title.

Rafa would be facing the German professional Alexander Zverev on June 3, which is also Nadal’s birthday. So, the day is already special for the Spanish great and the congratulatory message from the countryman Sainz will motivate Nadal to win another Grand Slam.

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Carlos Sainz congratulates Rafael Nadal on his progress in the French Open

The Ferrari man has always shown an interest in sports other than F1, like golf, soccer, and tennis. When it comes to tennis, he is a huge fan of the Spanish maestro Nadal. Sainz never misses an opportunity to showcase his support for Rafa.

Recently, Sainz sent his congratulatory message to Rafa on Twitter and cheered the Spaniard to win the Semi-Final. With a picture of the 21 Grand Slam winner, the Ferrari driver tweeted, “Many congratulations Crack! Go for all in semis!! 💪🏼
@RafaelNadal!!” (translated using Twitter)

WATCH: Carlos Sainz Relives F1 Horror at Pirelli Test Run With Ferrari

Nadal would face Zverev after winning 6-2 4-6 6-2 7(7)-6(4) against Djokovic. The Spaniard has won six times against Zverev in their past nine encounters. At their last match, Rafa beat Zverev to win the QF of the ATP Masters 1000 Rome Italy. Moreover, Rafa has a better chance to win against the German as he holds the most title wins (13) in Paris.

Sainz’s reason for finishing P2 at Monaco

The last race weekend in Monaco didn’t go as planned for the Maranello base. The homeboy Charles Leclerc was at the pole and leading the race while Sainz was tailing behind his teammate. Ferrari possibly could have finished 1-2 in the Monaco GP.

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But Leclerc dropped from pole to P4 after a poor pit-stop strategy, resulting in Red Bull’s Sergio Perez taking the lead. Meanwhile, Sainz was chasing the Mexican on hard tires for his first race win in 2022. However, the lapped cars made it difficult for the Spaniard to overtake Checo.

Sainz shared his thoughts on the P2 in Monaco, “We did the right call but a lapped car in my out-lap on slicks cost me too much time and we lost the lead. Tough one to digest because the win was there for the taking but I gave it all and we’ll comeback stronger as a team!“

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The 27-year-old is happy with his team’s performance in the principality and eyeing wins in future races. Let’s see if he can win the upcoming Azerbaijan GP.

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Written by:

Ripan Majumdar is an F1 writer at Essentially Sports. He is currently pursuing his Bachelor's in Science from West Bengal State University, Kolkata. Ripan is a massive Red Bull Racing and Sergio Perez fan, and has been following the sport for over the past few years.

Edited by:

Ranvijay Singh

Carlos Sainz Pens Encouraging Message to Compatriot Rafael Nadal As Tennis Icon Approaches 14th Title

Carlos Sainz congratulates Rafael Nadal on his progress in the French Open

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Sainz’s reason for finishing P2 at Monaco