"It's a dream come true" - Wheelchair tennis player Martin de la Puente on playing exhibition doubles with 'legend' Rafael Nadal

Martin de la Puente's joy knows no bounds, as he realized a dream by playing an exhibition doubles match with tennis legend Rafael Nadal in Chile last month.

Nadal, 36, is widely regarded as one of the best players in the sport's history, winning a record 22 Grand Slam titles, among countless other honors. Last month, the Spaniard and Casper Ruud embarked on a whirlwind exhibition tour of Latin America, touring six countries in ten days.

During the Chile leg of his tour in Santiago last week, Nadal teamed up with De La Puente, the World No. 1 doubles player in wheelchair doubles. In a presentation of Toyota's Olympic and Paralympic athletes for the 2024 Games in Paris, De La Puente told Marca that playing with Nadal was one of the things on his to-do list:

"It's a dream come true, one of the things to cross off the list. He is a legend and a reference."

The 23-year-old from Galicia, Spain, ended the year with the US Open and Masters Cup titles.

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Rafael Nadal's Latin American tour ends in Mexico City

Rafael Nadal beat Casper Ruud in Mexico City on Thursday.

Rafael Nadal and Casper Ruud had an eventful tour of Latin America in the last two weeks.

After commencing their fun tour in Buenos Aires (Argentina) last week, they moved on to Santiago (Chile) and Belo Horizonte (Brazil). During these three legs, Nadal squared off twice with Ruud, winning both matches. While waiting to catch a late-night flight from Belo Horizonte to Quito (Ecuador) last weekend, Nadal and Ruud also flaunted their football skills in a near-empty airport terminal.

Ruud pulled one back against Nadal in high altitude Quito. The Spaniard, though, reasserted his ascendancy by beating Ruud in the fifth leg of their tour in Bogota, Colombia on Monday. On the last day of their tour in Mexico City on Wednesday, Nadal emerged triumphant again, winning in straight sets.

Earlier, during the Bogota leg of his tour, Nadal hinted that he could be back in the country with his good friend — the recently retired Roger Federer. The Spaniard said:

“A good partner for a few years, perhaps the greatest rival of my sports career. He always told me about the great disappointment and sadness that this caused him. And honestly, from here, I say that I am confident that in the future I can be here with him, playing a game in front of all of us.”

Rafael Nadal, meanwhile, had a memorable 2022 season, winning two Grand Slam titles to end the year as the World No. 2.