Andy Murray and Rafael Nadal made their return to the tennis court at the Rafa Nadal Academy in Mallorca, reuniting a year and a half after both retired from professional tennis in 2024. The exhibition event, the 'Rafa Nadal Academy Slam', marked the academy's tenth anniversary.
Invitation and reunion
Murray was invited by Nadal in a social media video, with the Spaniard jokingly offering a "golf match" since the Scot had been "practising like a professional". The invite turned to tennis, with Murray encouraged to gather friends for the exhibition in Manacor.
The three-time Grand Slam champion visited the academy for the third time, following his 2016 practice session and 2019 appearance at the 'Rafa Nadal Slam'. The two legends, who share 25 major honours between them, captained two teams.
Team lineups and format
Murray headed 'Team Murray' with Marat Safin, Dominic Thiem and Fabio Fognini. Nadal was joined by Carlos Moya, Richard Gasquet and David Ferrer. The format was doubles matches decided by 10-point tiebreaks, with players forming multiple pairs throughout the afternoon.
A crowd of nearly 2000 watched as Moya and Gasquet seized the opening rubber, before Murray and Thiem levelled proceedings. Thiem then joined Fognini to defeat Gasquet and Ferrer, edging Murray's side ahead, but Murray and Safin avoided a whitewash as Nadal and Gasquet swept past them 10-0.
Deciding moments
Ferrer and Moya won later to equalise, but Murray and Fognini teamed up to beat Nadal and Moya, putting Murray's team on the brink of victory. Nadal and Moya bounced back to claim the deciding point and the title.
Murray reflected on their long history: "We've known each other since we were very young. The first times I saw him play in tournaments, he was different. In the way he played, but also in his attitude, his concentration and his maturity, even though he was only 13 or 14.
"It was partly thanks to him that I went to train in Spain for two years, starting when I was 15. I moved to Barcelona after talking with him at those tournaments.
"I had asked him: 'What does a week look like for you?' He replied: 'I go to school in the morning, then I train for two or three hours. I hit with [Carlos] Moya, among others.'
"Then he asked me the same question. I replied: 'I train for an hour, three times a week, with my mother.' That's when I understood that I had to change something."
