Real Madrid forward Vinicius Jr. and former French midfielder Zinedine Zidane were recently seen in the audience at the ATP 1000 Madrid Open, where Rafael Nadal was facing off against Australia’s Alex de Minaur in the second round on April 27th.
And previously Dani Carvajal also met the Tennis legend.
In a reciprocal gesture, Rafael Nadal, along with tennis luminaries like Carlos Alcaraz, Novak Djokovic, and Naomi Osaka, attended Real Madrid’s La Liga match against Barcelona last Sunday, witnessing a thrilling 3-2 victory for Madrid.
Post-match, Vinicius Jr. shared a photo with Nadal on X (formerly Twitter), praising the 22-time Grand Slam champion as a “LEGEND!!!!!”
After sitting out the entire clay season in 2023, Nadal returned to the ATP tour earlier this year at the Barcelona Open, only to face disappointment with a 7-5, 6-1 loss to Minaur in the second round. However, fate brought them together again, this time in Madrid.
Competing at the ATP 1000 Madrid Open, the 14-time Roland Garros champion secured a victory against World No. 11 Alex de Minaur in straight sets. The first set was a tightly contested affair, with Nadal eventually clinching the tiebreak 8-6. In the second set, Nadal showcased his trademark style, sealing the match 7-6 (8-6), 6-3.
When asked if he had regained his top form, Nadal humbly responded in the negative, expressing contentment with defeating the World No. 11 on clay. In his on-court interview, he remarked, “No, no.. not yet (laughs). It needs time. I think for moments it was a good level of tennis. I was able to do positive things. But it’s still on and off. Super happy to be able to be competitive against a great player like Alex. Playing over 2 hours means a lot to me.”
Up next, the King of Clay will face Argentina’s Pedro Cachín, who advanced by defeating Frances Tiafoe of the USA in the Round of 64.
🇧🇷🇫🇷 Vinicius Jr et Zinedine Zidane sont sur le Manolo Santana pour Rafael Nadal. ⚽️🎾pic.twitter.com/9vxF7pnwus
— Univers Tennis 🎾 (@UniversTennis) April 27, 2024
LEGEND!!!!! 🫡🙏🏾 @RafaelNadal pic.twitter.com/hXMJHxbOXF
— Vini Jr. (@vinijr) April 24, 2024
Real Madrid performance and stats
Real Madrid
Real Madrid is currently 1st in the Champions League with 18 points.
In the last 9 games, it has won 7 times and drawn twice. In its last match, Real Madrid drawn 3-3 against Manchester City.
It has a positive goal difference after scoring 16 goals and conceding 7.
Real Madrid will play the next match in Champions League against FC Bayern München on Tuesday 30th of April in Munich. The prediction is FC Bayern München winning the match.
