Rafael Nadal took Andy Murray’s text for kindness, until he read between the lines

Even amid emotional goodbyes and standing ovations, Rafael Nadal couldn’t resist sharing a laugh, at his own expense, thanks to Andy Murray’s perfectly timed banter.During a press conference at Roland-Garros following his farewell ceremony, Nadal opened up about a humorous message he received from Murray after his beloved Real Madrid suffered a painful Champions League exit at the hands of Arsenal last month."The day that Arsenal beat Real Madrid, when the match just finished, after one second, [Andy] text me a message,” Nadal said with a grin. “He said, ‘Hey Rafa, haven’t spoken to you in a while. Just checking in to make sure you are okay.’”At first, Nadal thought the gesture was heartfelt. “Honestly, [it] takes me like five seconds to realise what I was reading,” he said. “At the beginning, I said, ‘Okay, he’s such a nice guy.

He’s asking about how I’m doing, family.’”But then it clicked. “After five seconds, I said, ‘This British sense of humour.’” He added with a smirk: “By the way, I didn’t text him back when PSG beat Arsenal.”

A rivalry beyond the court

Nadal, a lifelong Madridista who’s even been tipped for a future leadership role at the club, was stung by Real Madrid’s 5-1 aggregate loss to Arsenal in the Champions League quarter-finals, a shock result made worse by the fact that Murray, now retired and a proud Gooner, was clearly paying attention.

Arsenal’s 3-0 first-leg win at the Emirates featured two goals from Declan Rice and one from Mikel Merino. They followed that up with a 2-1 win at the Bernabéu, thanks to second-half goals by Bukayo Saka and Gabriel Martinelli.Though Arsenal would later fall to PSG in the semifinals, Murray made sure to enjoy the moment, even if Nadal didn’t quite return the favour when PSG sent the Gunners packing.

One last dance at Roland-Garros

Murray, along with Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic, joined Nadal for a moving tribute at Roland-Garros, where the Spaniard was honoured for a legendary career that includes 14 French Open titles.

Fighting back tears, Nadal reflected on his storied rivalries with his fellow tennis greats: “They represent a very important part of my tennis career. We pushed each other to the limits… That kind of rivalry raised the numbers in tennis to the next level.”

From rivals to friends

Despite years of fierce battles on court, the camaraderie between Nadal and Murray is now more visible than ever. “You don't know yet, Novak. Probably you know already, Andy.

With Roger, we have talked about it a couple times,” Nadal said, referencing life after retirement.“All the nerves, pressure, strange feelings when we see each other as rivals, it's completely different when you finish your career.”Even as he closes one chapter, Nadal clearly hasn’t lost his spark, or his sense of humour, even when it comes at the cost of a footballing heartbreak.