Luke Donald commends $550 million worth tennis star for penning heartfelt letter to Rafael Nadal after retirement announcement
Luke Donald reacted to a message posted by Roger Federer on X on Tuesday (Nov. 19). The tennis star, who has a net worth of $550 million (via Celebrity Net Worth), wrote a heartfelt message dedicated to his colleague Rafael Nadal on the occasion of the latter's retirement announcement.
Donald reacted by reposting Federer's message, accompanied by the following text:
"As a sports star you always aim to be your best, and these two were the very best for a lot of their careers, but what strikes me about this post from Roger is the deep friendship and respect they had for each other despite being fierce competitors.
"It’s the stories they shared together along their individual journeys that seem to mean the most to Roger. Thank you for the small incite here, and thank you both for inspiring me as I followed both of your careers."
Rafael Nadal announced last October that he will retire from professional tennis at the end of the 2024 season. Nadal's year will end with the Davis Cup Final 8, which will be played from November 19-24 at the Jose Maria Martin Carpena Arena in Malaga, Spain.
Nadal will end his professional career after 23 seasons in which he won 92 ATP titles, including 22 Grand Slams.
The Mallorcan is also an excellent amateur golfer. In early 2024, he won the Balearic Mid-Amateur Championship with a score of 3 over 147. He had previously finished sixth in 2021 and second in 2022 in the same tournament.
The post that Luke Donald reacted to
Roger Federer's post, to which Luke Donald responded, reflects the former Swiss tennis player's admiration for his Spanish colleague's personality and career. In his post, Federer said that Nadal has made him "reinvent" his own game.
This is part of what Federer wrote:
"Let’s start with the obvious: you beat me—a lot. More than I managed to beat you. You challenged me in ways no one else could. On clay, it felt like I was stepping into your backyard, and you made me work harder than I ever thought I could just to hold my ground.
"You made me reimagine my game—even going so far as to change the size of my racquet head, hoping for any edge."
Luke Donald has often expressed his admiration for Roger Federer. On his way to defending his Scottish Open title in 2013, Donald said he was inspired by the Swiss player's style of play (via Echo).
More recently, Donald used his X account to praise Federer's speech when he received a Doctor of Humane Letters from the University of Dartmouth.
Luke Donald is the captain of the European team that will compete in the 2025 Ryder Cup. He has won 17 tournaments in his 23-year professional career, including seven on the European Tour.