Rafael Nadal's sister Maribel gets emotional after farewell message by tennis icon

Maribel Nadal, the younger sister of tennis legend Rafael Nadal, was overcome by emotion after a heartfelt message from Roger Federer, Nadal's longtime rival.

IMAGO / MPG

Tennis legend Rafael Nadal is set to retire following the Davis Cup Finals in Malaga, marking the end of his incredible career that included 22 Grand Slam titles.

Ahead of his retirement, fellow tennis icon and longtime rival Roger Federer shared a lengthy statement for the Spaniard.

In the statement, Federer credited Nadal for helping him "reimagine" his game.

"Vamos, Rafa! As you get ready to graduate from tennis, I’ve got a few things to share before I maybe get emotional. start with the obvious: you beat me—a lot. More than I managed to beat you," he wrote.

"You challenged me in ways no one else could. On clay, it felt like I was stepping into your backyard, and you made me work harder than I ever thought I could just to hold my ground. You made me reimagine my game—even going so far as to change the size of my racquet head, hoping for any edge."

Nadal's sister, Maribel, caught wind of Federer's statement and reporsted it on Instagram Stories with a note of her appreciation. She included the teary-eyed and heart emojis in her post, while tagging Federer.

Maribel Nadal/Instagram

Game recognizes game.

Maribel Nadal/Instagram

Maribel Nadal/Instagram

Throughout their career, Nadal and Federer faced off an incredible 40 times. Nadal holds the all-time series lead at 26-14, including 10-4 in Grand Slam tournaments and 6-3 in Grand Slam Finals.

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