Rafael Nadal regained the number one position in the ATP rankings after the Nitto ATP Finals 2019 in November. However, did Nadal screamed out of joy after his arch-rival Roger Federer helped him to clinch the top spot?
Earlier, Federer defeated the defending runner-up Novak Djokovic in the round-robin of the ATP Finals 2019 London. The defeat also saw the Serbian knocking out of the season-ending tournament in the group stage. On the other hand, Federer’s victory confirmed the year-end No.1 ranking to Nadal.
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“I didn’t make a fist pump” – Rafael Nadal
The 19-time Grand Slam champion revealed that though the match was important for him and he followed it. However, he disclosed that he did not scream after Federer defeated Djokovic.
“No, no, I didn’t scream, although obviously, it was an important match for me. I followed it quietly from the sofa, I didn’t make a fist pump either. It’s so different when you’re not on the court to create the result,” Nadal said in an interview with L’Equipe.
He further added: “I was of course very happy because it gave me the number one spot at the end of the year, but it was also because I had achieved a lot of other things since the start of the year.”
Nadal’s victorious 2019 season
Rafael Nadal managed to claim the year-end no. 1 spot for the fifth time in his career. The Mallorcan also became the oldest male player in the history of tennis to achieve the feat. The Balearic was the most consistent player in 2019, claiming two Grand Slam titles and two Masters 1000 crowns that were enough to keep him in front of Novak Djokovic at the end of the season.
Nadal also helped his teams to clinch the titles at the non-ATP events – Laver Cup 2019 and Davis Cup 2019. He further won the Mubadala World Championship in Abu Dhabi for the fifth time in his career.
He will commence the 2020 season at the ATP Cup, where he will lead the Spanish team. Spain’s lineup features Roberto Bautista Agut, Pablo Carreno Busta, Albert Ramos-Vinolas and Feliciano Lopez.
