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Rafael Nadal shares classy moment with Serena Williams at US Open ahead of farewell event
Rafael Nadal and Serena Williams delighted fans as their paths crossed at Flushing Meadows this week, ahead of the upcoming US Open. The stakes are high for both legends of the sport with the former, 36, bidding to build on his legacy and the latter, 40, poised to retire once her run comes to an end.
Earlier this month, Williams announced that she would soon be ‘evolving away from tennis’ with the US Open presumed to be her final tournament. The veteran has lost two matches from two since that statement, with defeats to Belinda Bencic in Toronto and Emma Raducanu in Cincinnati.
Williams will naturally want to cap off her career with a much deeper run at Flushing Meadows, where she won her first Grand Slam title in 1999 and went on to claim five more on home turf. The US Open draw is expected on Thursday so she and Nadal will both discover their potential collision course through the tournament.
The Spaniard is gearing up for the Grand Slam in the face of adversity with his wife, Mery Perello, in hospital during the final stages of her pregnancy. He has also played very limited tennis since pulling out of his Wimbledon semi-final with a 7mm abdominal tear.
Rafael Nadal and Serena Williams stopped for a brief chat at Arthur Ashe Stadium (Image: Twitter @usopen)
In fact, the one match he has played since withdrawing at SW19 came last week as he lost a three-set battle with Borna Coric in Cincinnati. He has, however, shown grit and determination to overcome injury issues in the past and he may need to use all of it once proceedings get underway in New York on August 29.
With their respective preparations heating up, Nadal and Williams crossed paths at Arthur Ashe stadium on Wednesday. From one legend to another, a kiss on both cheeks delighted onlooking fans who screamed their approval.
