Legend Rafael Nadal and Iga Swiatek Join Forces to Send Heartfelt Tribute to 26YO ATP Pro for Historic Madrid Triumph

Casper Ruud hails the ‘King of Clay’, Rafael Nadal, as his tennis idol. He grew up watching the Spaniard lift innumerable titles and while speaking about his admiration for Nadal in a previous interview he admitted, “When I was young, that was the kind of guy I watched play and was thinking ‘oh, I also want to be like him or play tennis like him’, so that’s where it started for me.” In fact, Ruud even went to the Rafa Nadal Academy in 2018, where he trained under the legendary Rafa and learned several ins and outs of the sport. Nadal has time and again reflected on how closely he monitors those who have trained in his Academy. Recently, the 22-time Grand Slam champion was spotted joining Polish superstar Iga Swiatek to congratulate Ruud on his historic feat at the 2025 Madrid Open.

Casper Ruud recently secured a hard-fought victory (7-5,3-6,6-4) in the Madrid Open final against the British number one, Jack Draper. With this victory, Ruud has not only managed to clinch his first ATP 1000 title of his career, but he has also become the first Norwegian to win a Masters 1000 title. Following this impressive victory in the Spanish capital, the five-time champion, Rafael Nadal, dropped a reaction on his X handle saying, “ @CasperRuud98 Congratulations! So happy for you and your team! Well deserved! .” Later on, he even shared a picture of Ruud lifting up the title on his IG stories with the caption, “Congratulations @casperruud. Well deserved .”

Not only Nadal, but also another big fan of the Spaniard, Iga Swiatek, stood up to showcase her support for the Norwegian. Swiatek shared a picture of Ruud with the caption, “So so cool. Congrats @casperruud .” Interestingly, Swiatek’s appreciation comes just days after Ruud showcased his support for the Pole after seeing her emotional breakdown during her SF match against Coco Gauff. (Swiatek lost that match to Gauff by 1-6,1-6). 

After seeing Swiatek’s emotional reaction in the second set, covering her head with a towel as she broke down in tears, Casper Ruud shared a tweet saying, “Hey @iga_swiatek keep your head up. Like millions of other people, I love watching you play. Not your day today, but you inspire so many and you’ll be back stronger than ever!!“

Is it the first time that we’ve seen Rafael Nadal heaping praise on the brilliance of Ruud, though? Well, in 2023 when Ruud went down to Novak Djokovic in the French Open final, Nadal shared a picture of Ruud on his IG stories with the caption, “Bravo Casper. Another great Roland Garros. You are a great player and a great person! Tough loss, but anyway amazing run!!!” Nadal and his family have always shown support for this Norwegian throughout his rapid rise.

In 2024, when Ruud clinched the Barcelona Open title, he said, “I grew up watching this tournament on television and it was always a joy to see Nadal, who was the guy I idolized growing up, succeed here. He won this tournament 12 times, so It has always been a motivation and an inspiration for me to come here. Lifting the trophy is a fantastic feeling.” After seeing his success in Barcelona, Nadal’s sister Maribel congratulated Ruud by sharing a picture of him holding the title and attached three ‘clapping’ emojis along with that post. What was her reaction to seeing Ruud lift the 2025 Madrid Open title?

Rafael Nadal’s sister congratulates Casper Ruud on his historic triumph in Madrid

After witnessing plenty of narrow misses over the last few years, Casper Ruud finally managed to win a big title in his career! He has reached the finals of the Grand Slam events thrice but failed to deliver when it mattered the most. After defeats in the 2022 Miami Open and last year’s Monte Carlo Masters, it was a third time lucky for Ruud. What did he say after the match?

“My record in big finals is still not good, it’s 1-6. I’ve been in many unbelievable and incredible positions in my career, and I’ve been able to experience some great things and, unfortunately, have been on the losing spectrum of many of those matches, but that’s okay.” Ruud revealed that he has been dreaming about winning tournaments like this, or Grand Slams, or becoming number one for quite some time, and he’s happy to grab his chances with both hands this time.

Seeing his incredible win, Rafael Nadal’s sister Maribel shared an IG story, highlighting his success in Madrid with the caption, “Congrats @casperruud. Well deserved.” Not only her, but even the six-time Grand Slam champion, Boris Becker, also congratulated Ruud on his success through a tweet. He wrote, “Casper did it!!! Holding his nerve playing a perfect last game and deservingly winning the @MutuaMadridOpen but also paying my respect to @jackdraper0 reaching the final playing scintillating tennis on his least favourite surface! Well done guys! @CasperRuud98.”

Serena Williams’ former coach, Rennae Stubbs, also joined them to congratulate Casper Ruud. But she also made a bold prediction for the Norwegian. What’s it? “Huge congratulations to Casper! Wow!! Terrific match. After such a tough year for his standards, this is a statement. French Open runner-up twice. Look out again for him in Paris,” Stubbs tweeted.

With the Italian Open and French Open knocking at the door, do you think Ruud can keep his winning run intact in these two clay-court events? Share your thoughts in the comment box.

The post Legend Rafael Nadal and Iga Swiatek Join Forces to Send Heartfelt Tribute to 26YO ATP Pro for Historic Madrid Triumph appeared first on EssentiallySports.