Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal came together with their respective teams for a heartwarming photo following the pair’s Six Kings Slam third-place clash on Saturday, October 19. The two former World No. 1 players squared off for one last time at the exhibition event in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, with the Serb eventually finishing third.

Earlier this month, Rafael Nadal confirmed that the 2024 Davis Cup Finals in November would mark his final competitive outing as a tennis player. Since then, tributes have poured in for the former World No. 1 and 22-time Major winner. Even though the Six Kings Slam was an exhibition tournament, there was significant attention surrounding it due to the Spaniard’s participation.

Nadal was granted direct passage to the tournament’s semifinal but lost the match to young compatriot Carlos Alcaraz. This set him up for a third-place showdown against great rival Novak Djokovic, who had lost his own semifinal showdown against reigning World No. 1 Jannik Sinner. Despite the Serb and the Spaniard’s clash in Riyadh not counting as an official ATP Tour-level match, both players contested it fiercely.

Ultimately though, it was the Serb who came out on top with a 6-2, 7-6(5) win over Rafael Nadal. Following the conclusion of the match and their post-match on-court interviews, the iconic duo bonded behind the scenes with their respective teams for an all-smiles photo.

During his post-match, on-court interview, the Serb became emotional and praised Nadal over the Spaniard’s achievements and also urged him to consider prolonging his tennis-playing career.

After securing a third-place finish at the Six Kings Slam, Novak Djokovic was asked to speak about his thoughts on Rafael Nadal’s imminent retirement. The Serb voiced his admiration for the Spaniard and even went as far as to urge Nadal to reconsider his retirement decision. Nadal was standing beside the 24-time Grand Slam champion at the time and appreciated the Serb’s heartfelt words.

“It’s been an incredible honour, an incredible pleasure to share the court with you. It’s quite an emotional moment, we’ve been playing so many matches over the years. Don’t leave tennis man, stay a little bit more. You left an incredible legacy and mark. We really appreciate it,” Djokovic told Nadal.

Nadal himself later returned the favor after he was honored by the Six Kings Slam organizers with a golden racket. The Spaniard paid credit to the Serb for being a player who motivated him to push himself to his limits. Nadal and Djokovic played each other in 60 competitive matches, with the Serb leading their head-to-head 31-29.