Nadal sends message to Djokovic after Serbian star equals his Grand Slam record

Rafael Nadal has joined Roger Federer in congratulating Novak Djokovic after the Serbian star made it 22 Grand Slam trophies at the Australian Open.

Djokovic’s victory over Stefanos Tsitsipas on Sunday means he has now tied Nadal for the most major men’s singles titles in history as the GOAT (Greatest of All Time) race continues. Federer, who retired in September, ended his career with 20.

Djokovic, 35, and Nadal, 36, still have the chance to overtake all-time leader Margaret Court – who won 24 Grand Slam trophies in the women’s singles – although the Spaniard has largely struggled with injury in the latter stages of his career and is rumoured to be considering retirement while Djokovic remains fit.

Nadal headed to Melbourne Park as the top seed this year but crashed out in the second round. He has the chance to redeem himself at the French Open in May – where he has won a record 10 titles – although he must recover from a nasty muscle tear injury which sees him set for a lengthy spell on the sidelines.

Nadal sent a message to Djokovic after his record-extending 10th Australian Open triumph and posted on Instagram: ‘Amazing achievement Nole @djokernole. Many congrats to you and your team! Well deserved. Enjoy Nole!

‘Congrats Nole, to you and your team for this great achievement. Enjoy the moment!’

Federer also fired a message to Djokovic as he posted: ‘Incredible effort, again! Many congratulations.’

Djokovic, meanwhile, was quizzed about the possibility of overtaking Serena Williams’ 23 major titles and Court’s all-time record of 24 following his victory over Tsitsipas.

‘Of course I am motivated to win as many slams as possible,’ Djokovic said. ‘At this stage of my career, these trophies are the biggest motivational factor of why I still compete.

‘That’s the case without a doubt. I still have lots of motivation. Let’s see how far it takes me. I really don’t want to stop here. I don’t have intention to stop here.’

Djokovic spoke to Eurosport about the jacket and said: ‘I don’t know [when it was made].

‘People won’t believe me, but I had no clue about this jacket. I took a different jacket for the ceremony but my team told me to put on this one. It was nice of them.’

Source: Read Full Article