Rafael Nadal recalls text Andy Murray sent him after Champions League match
The friendship between tennis legends Rafael Nadal and Andy Murray has been well documented over the last two decades.
The former was honored at the French Open by having his footprint immortalized on Court Philippe-Chatrie, where Murray and members of the sport's "Big Four" appeared to celebrate Nadal's achievements.
The Spaniard, who retired in 2024, dominated at Roland Garros in his career. He lifted the French Open trophy a record 14 times.
After the ceremony, Nadal took questions from reporters in which he detailed how much his friends like Murray meant to him.
Nadal recounted a time recently when Murray appeared to be checking up on his mate but in reality was actually executing some bragging rights. Murray, an Arsenal fan, took the first opportunity he could to rub his squad's victory over Nadal's favorite, Real Madrid, in the Champions League quarterfinals in April.
"My good friend Andy [Murray] ... we were not in touch for a while. The day that Arsenal beat Real Madrid, when the match just finished, after one second he text me a message," Nadal recalled.
The Gunners defeated Madrid, 5-1, on aggregate across two matches to reach the club's first Champions League semifinal since 2006.
"'Hey Rafa, haven't spoken to you in a while, just checking in to make sure you're OK,'" the message read per Nadal. "Honestly it [took] me like five seconds to realize what I was reading. Because at the beginning I said, 'OK he is such a nice guy, he's asking me about how I am doing, family,' and after five seconds I said, 'This ... always British. British sense of humor.'"
Nadal seemed to have taken Murray's cheeky poke well as he was laughing along with reporters in the room as he told the story.
Professional athletes, they're just like the rest of us fans. They can't wait to laud their favorite team's feats over their friends either.
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