Two tennis superstars and longtime on-court rivals Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer engage ina conversation during last year's Laver Cup. (Getty Images)
Swiss ace Roger Federer has been doing a lot of work in South Africa ahead of his Match for Africa clash against Rafael Nadal.
This would be the sixth match in the now yearly series for the Roger Federer Foundation and also features a celebrity match that sees Microsoft owner Bill Gates and comedian Trevor Noah take part.
Federer has been doing the rounds and building up the event while Nadal was launching his Rafa Nadal Academy in Kuwait recently.
However, Federer still had time to showcase his tennis skills to South Africa rugby captain Siya Kolisi.
The 28-year-old rugby star became the country’s first black player to take up that role, and he led the Springboks to a win in the 2019 World Cup final.
Kolisi and Federer were volleying the tennis ball on a small court with many fans cheering them on.
The South African added that he was not Nadal, but Federer quipped back that he didn’t want another Spaniard on the tour.
Nadal and Federer have been involved in some mighty tussles in the French Open and Wimbledon over the years.
The pair still hold mutual respect for one another, with Federer having played a charity game in Spain against Nadal a few years back.
Nadal and Federer also hold 39 Grand Slam titles between them and with the French Open coming up followed by Wimbledon, the pair could extend that further.
Many fans saw the funny side of the Swiss star’s comments and shared some hilarious reactions to the reply:
Each Match for Africa event has raised close to $1million over the years, and tickets have already been sold out for the show-piece event in Cape Town.
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Federer and Nadal have had some incredible matches over the years, but with the pressure down on this, there should be a lot of fun and madness as the pair light it up in South Africa.
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