'Only then did I ask him his name' - When tennis legend Pat Cash lost a match against 14-year-old Rafael Nadal

Rafael Nadal made his return to tennis action at the Barcelona Open.

In 2000, former Australian tennis star Pat Cash was defeated by 14-year-old Rafael Nadal in an exhibition match. Nadal had replaced German icon Boris Becker in the exhibition match.

Cash, winner of the 1987 Wimbledon Championships, is one of the greatest Australian players in the sport’s history. The Aussie also guided his national side to two Davis Cup triumphs during his prime (1983 and 1986). However, the former World No. 4 was once defeated by Nadal, when the Spaniard was only 14.

Pat Cash announced his retirement from tennis in 1997, while three-time Wimbledon champion Boris Becker hung up his boots in 1999. In 2000, the two retired stars decided to play an exhibition match in Mallorca, Spain. However, due to some reason, Becker had to withdraw his participation from the exhibition game at the last minute.

After the withdrawal, the former German tennis star was replaced by Mallorca resident Rafael Nadal, who was only 14 at the time. Cash revealed that he decided to let Nadal win a few games as it would help the young Spaniard keep his morale high. However, the 1987 Wimbledon champion ended up losing the match against Nadal. Cash once wrote: 

“I was supposed to play an exhibition match with Boris Becker in Mallorca. Half an hour before, he says he won’t play. ‘You will play a 14-year-old boy’, they tell me. I go on court ready to make him win some games, so he won’t start crying. I lose in straight sets, and only then do I ask him his name: Rafael Nadal.”

The Spaniard eventually turned out to be one of the greatest players in the sport’s history. Nadal has won 22 Grand Slam titles, out of which 14 are Roland Garros. He is also known as the ‘King of Clay’ because of his exceptional success on clay courts.

After a prolonged hiatus of 681 days, Rafael Nadal made his highly-anticipated comeback to clay on April 16 (Tuesday) at the 2024 Barcelona Open, where he recorded a comfortable 6-2, 6-3 victory over Italy’s Flavio Cobolli.

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