Rafael Nadal apologises to the ball girl after his shot hit her on the face during the Australian Open.
World No. 1 Rafael Nadal recently posted an Instagram update on the ball girl he hit during his Australian Open second-round match against Federico Delbonis on Thursday
In the post, Nadal mentioned that he was happy to see her do well and thanked her for the opportunity to meet the family.
The unfortunate incident occurred in the third set of the match en route to the Spaniard’s victory over Delbonis.
Nadal, who was leading 4-1 in the third and final set sent down a scorching forehand that hit a ball girl on the head.
A visibly distraught and concerned Nadal was quick to react despite the girl giving him a thumbs up after the event. Nadal accompanied by his opponent Delbonis went over to the girl, named Anita, and checked on her to find out if she was doing okay.
The 19-time Grand Slam winner later lifted the girl’s hat, gave her a kiss on the cheek and patted her on the head, which drew a round of applause from the crowd in the Rod Laver Arena.
“For her, probably it was not a good moment,” the Spaniard was heard saying on court after the match. “I was so scared for her, honestly,” he continued.
Meanwhile, Nadal sailed into the third round overcoming Delbonis 6-3, 7-6 (4) 6-1. And will next face fellow Spaniard Pablo Carreno Busta, who is seeded 27th.
After the match, Nadal once again went up to Anita and handed her his headband. “She is a super brave girl,”
Nadal, who has so far won just an Australian Open, back in 2009 has had an easy outing so far.
Before his win over Delbonis, the 2019 US and French Open champion had defeated Hugo Dellien of Bolivia 6-2, 6-3, 6-0 to start the tournament on a good note.
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