Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer speak almost weekly and have discussed playing an exhibition match together in Las Vegas, according to an interview with Associated Press reported by Nau.ch.
Rafael Nadal is scheduled to play at the MGM Slam exhibition tournament in Las Vegas in late February 2027. The 22-time Grand Slam champion stated that he dreams of organizing a match against his longtime Swiss rival during the event, though nothing is finalized yet.
“We are in contact almost every week and talk to each other very often,” Nadal said, describing his current relationship with Federer. The pair maintain a close friendship after years of on-court rivalry.
Looking forward to being back on court in Las Vegas! See you on February 28 at The MGM Slam Presented by Capital One at T-Mobile Arena! Tickets go on sale this week. See you there! 🤗 pic.twitter.com/dPR1L6scez
Nadal left open the possibility of a shared appearance in Nevada. “If at some point we find the right occasion and the right place to set something up, you will know it. But I don’t know yet,” Nadal said.
An exhibition in Las Vegas would follow previous events hosted by the two tennis icons. In 2020, Nadal and Federer played an exhibition match in Cape Town in front of approximately 52,000 fans.
Throughout their professional careers, Federer and Nadal faced each other 40 times in official competition. Nadal won 24 of those encounters, while Federer claimed 16 victories.
With Stan Wawrinka also stepping away from the tour, Novak Djokovic remains the only active competitor on the professional circuit from the generation of players that dominated the past two decades of men’s tennis.
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