Rafael Nadal’s sister Maribel reacts to heart-touching tribute paid to Spaniard after his final match at Madrid Open

Rafael Nadal's sister Maribel reacted to the emotional tribute paid to the Spaniard after his moving final dance at the Madrid Open.

The 37-year-old, who is possibly in his final season, competed at the 2024 Madrid Open where he kicked off his run with a comfortable straight-set win against 16-year-old Darwin Blanch in the opening round.

He followed it up with a huge win against Alex de Minaur, getting revenge over the Aussie who had defeated him in Barcelona recently. The five-time Madrid Open champion then faced a huge task when he went up against Pedro Cachin in the third round but overcame the Argentine in three sets.

The Spaniard's dream journey at the Madrid Open, however, came to an end in the fourth round after he was defeated by 30th seed Jiri Lehecka. An emotional tribute was paid to the most decorated player of the tournament by the organizers, who rolled down five banners, each featuring a picture from every year the Spaniard won the Masters 1000 title.

This was followed by a heart-touching speech by the five-time Madrid Open champion himself which left no eye dry in the arena. Nadal was also presented with a special trophy.

Nadal's younger sister Maribel, who was also in attendance for his final dance, posted a video of the Spaniard waving the Madrid crowd goodbye for the final time in front of the banners and also a photo of the same.

"Madrid ✨🤗🎾♥️," Maribel captioned.

"It has been an incredible journey that started when I was very little" - Rafael Nadal

Rafael Nadal

Rafael Nadal delivered an emotional speech during his post-match interview, which had everyone in the arena in tears, including Maribel.

The Spaniard said that his journey in Madrid had been a gift and that this moment was bigger to him than any Grand Slam win, even though it was hard for him to experience it.

"It has been an incredible journey that started when I was very little. It has been a gift for 21 years," he said in his post-match interview (via Punto de Break).

"This is more important than any Grand Slam that I have won and will always stay with me. This is one of those days that when it arrives it is very hard, but life and my body have been sending me signals for a long time," he added.

Nadal will next compete at the Italian Open, provided he feels fit enough. He is a 10-time champion in Rome with his most recent win coming in 2021 against Novak Djokovic in a three-setter.