Roger Federer spoke about how it felt to play the Laver Cup with Rafael Nadal and other competitors. The Basel native said: "I am happy spending time with him. I share all the meals with him and the other teammates and we speak a lot.
Spending a week like this in a group with Rafa and almost all the top ten players is very special, nice. Everyone wants to win and with Rafa we speak a lot about tactics. It shows that the Laver Cup concept works." Asked about his relationship with Nadal, Federer replied: "It evolved.
In the beginning he was very respectful and shy towards the top ten players and especially me when I was world No. 1. Then you could see his personality coming up. We had tough battles on court, we had some disagrements but there was always a lot of respect between us.
We shared so many strong moments on and off the court that shaped our friendship. The older we are, the more I realize that Rafa was very important in my career. He will always be my ultimate rival. And even if I was already No.
1 when he came up, he helped me to improve and become a better player. Rafa may have represented an extra motivation for me. Our rivalry is part of what I like of tennis. Our games get completed another. When I train, I try to progress and fit my game to honor out rivalry."