The end of Rafael Nadal's career has moved the world of sport, but the farewell ceremony organized by the board of the Davis Cup Finals in Malaga has disappointed Toni Nadal, uncle and former coach of the legendary Spanish champion.
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The 22-time Grand Slam champion, after Spain's defeat against the Netherlands in the Davis Cup quarterfinals, greeted the crowd at the Palacio de Deportes Jos Mara Martn Carpena, who chanted the Spaniard's name.
Toni and many insiders (as well as many fans in the crowd) have judged the tournament's boaed negatively for celebrating the 14-time French Open champion at too late an hour. A choice that penalized the presence of special guests - such as Roger Federer, Novak Djokovic and Andy Murray - because they were not sure of the day or time to be in Malaga. And not even uncle Toni could take part in the event due to some work commitments.
The former coach of the Spaniard, in an interview with the sports radio channel El Larguero, complained to the board about the organization of the ceremony, underlining that Rafa would have deserved more.
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"I didn't like the ceremony. Obviously the support from the crowd was emotional. I would have liked to see images of Rafael with the Davis Cup won in Seville or images related to the successes achieved in Madrid, Roland Garros or Wimbledon. This creates emotion. I don't want to criticize anyone, but I would have preferred something different as a member of his family and his former coach.
They obviously had good intentions, but I would have preferred something else. The images transmit passion to a person like Rafa. If they had done this, everything would have been up to Rafael. I had work to do in Madrid, for me it was impossible. I wanted to go to Malaga on Sunday. I would have liked to be there. We all knew that this day would come. Things were not going well and I think Rafa made the right choice," explained Toni.
