In his first competitive match since announcing his retirement after the Davis Cup in November, Rafael Nadal was comfortably beaten by compatriot Carlos Alcaraz at the Six Kings Slam. The 22-time Grand Slam winner will face Novak Djokovic in Saturday’s third-place play-off, while Alcaraz takes on Jannik Sinner in the final. Nadal called Alcaraz an “animal” who does not need his advice.
Rafael Nadal paid tribute to Carlos Alcaraz, calling his compatriot an “animal”, after losing 6-3 6-3 in the semi-finals of the Six Kings Slam.
In his first competitive match since announcing his retirement from tennis, Nadal was comfortably beaten by the world No. 2, who advances to face Jannik Sinner in Saturday’s final.
Alcaraz had insisted he would not take it easy against his idol, and though Nadal was pleased with his own performance, he admitted the youngster was too strong.
“It’s been a pleasure,” Nadal told DAZN. “Carlos was too good. He’s been playing fantastic the last few years, better and better.
“I think it was a good performance [from myself], but it wasn’t even enough to play against an animal like him.
“I think he doesn’t need much advice now. He’s showing everyone that he has a great team next to him and a great family.
“So I think he’s going to be going very well with what he has. He’s learning all the time and we can see that he’s evolving in every single way. But of course, I will be ready anytime he wants to call me.”
In truth, it was a comfortable victory for Alcaraz, but not without some sprinklings of stardust from Nadal.
The crowd were brought to their feet as the 22-time Grand Slam champion secured his third love-hold of the contest midway through the second set.
By then it was clear that Alcaraz would be progressing to Saturday’s final, having served seven games without offering a break point to his idol.
And if Nadal did not truly believe before seeing it for himself three years ago that another Spaniard could come along with the potential to eclipse his haul of trophies, he certainly does now.
“[I heard] he’s winning, he’s special,” recalled Nadal. “People were telling me that somebody very good is coming now.
“But of course, I didn’t have the chance to watch him play until I was practicing with him in Australia in 2021.
“And even if he was very young, you saw things that you don’t see in the others. You can see now.”
Novak Djokovic will battle Nadal for third place on Saturday, before Sinner and Alcaraz fight for the title and £4.6 million in prize money.
Alcaraz called his upcoming opponent “the best in the world”, with the Italian losing just once in his last 25 matches, though that defeat came at the hands of the Spaniard in the China Open final.
Alcaraz said: “He’s the best player in the world right now, or at least for me. It’s a really big challenge facing Jannik, seeing the year that he’s having.
“It’s going to be a really tough challenge for me. I’ve played really good battles, tough ones, so I expect a really difficult and good match.”
