Rafael Nadal recently unveiled getting heavily emotional owing to the opportunity that he received during the Paris Olympics 2024. The former ATP pro mentioned how the moment that he shared alongside Serena Williams overwhelmed him, leading to tears flowing from his eyes.

Rafael Nadal had the honor of carrying the Olympic torch at the 2024 Paris Olympics opening ceremony. This symbolized his remarkable career and contributions to the world of sports. Nadal achieved Olympic success by winning a gold medal in singles at the 2008 Beijing Olympics and another in doubles at the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Olympics.

Rafael Nadal recently reflected on the overflow of emotions he experienced at the Paris Olympics opening ceremony. Minutes before boarding the glorious boat on the River Seine, the ATP star was overwhelmed. He made this admission during the recent conversation with former American pro Andy Roddick at the Served Podcast.

“I was nervous because I don’t know what’s going to be, but for me, when, because when we, when we see the image, I going up stairs, going to the stage to, to pick up the torch. So in that moment I had like two minutes of waiting there. So when I realized the moment, I started to cry a little bit before,” he said (23:45).

He also mentioned getting hit with instant self-realisation at the moment. The 22-time Grand Slam champion explained that he convinced himself to enjoy the once-in-a-lifetime experience.

“When I start to cry, I say, shut up, man. Stop it. It’s not the moment to cry. It’s the moment to enjoy. So I say, boom, boom, try to not be too emotional. Just enjoy the moment. Let’s do the thing. And yeah, let’s, let’s have fun,” he added.

Following the opening ceremony, Nadal also participated in the event. Although he managed to surpass the opening challenge against Márton Fucsovics, he couldn’t triumph over Novak Djokovic in his second matchup.

Rafael Nadal unveils his suitable surface while facing Novak Djokovic

Rafael Nadal recently addressed the on-court rivalry between him and Novak Djokovic. The Spaniard talked about how surfaces played a key role during his showdowns against the Serb. Along with that, the ex-pro also picked one surface that he feels he was better at against Djokovic.

In the aforementioned podcast with Andy Roddick, Nadal mentioned how grass courts gave him a slight edge over hard courts against the 24-time Grand Slam champion.

“Of course my game adapts well naturally to the clay but I love playing on fast courts. It’s true that I finished my winning with a couple of US Open titles, but my second best surface was grass. Honestly I prefer to play against Novak on grass than on hard courts,” he said.

While Nadal marked an end to his professional career, Novak Djokovic still continues to exist as a tough contender. However, the Serb currently appears to be derailed as his campaign at Indian Wells ended with a round of 64 defeat against Botic Van de Zandschulp.