Queen’s response to Rafael Nadal’s meet and greet snub led tennis ace to despair
The tennis superstar declined a meeting with Her Majesty before a big match, and in return, she didn’t stay to watch him play.
Rafael Nadal will not be playing at this year’s Wimbledon Championships after undergoing hip surgery in June.
The star was forced to take action after he injured his hip flexor at the Australian Open in January, throwing away any chance he might secure a third championship title.
He has, however, been spotted at the Mallorca Championships supporting his fellow countryman Feliciano Lopez, in a video that went viral on social media.
Nadal is generally believed to be out for the entirety of 2023, hoping to return to the Open season next year where he has enjoyed major success across multiple events like his favourite French Open, where he has won a record 14 titles.
The Spaniard was forced to pull out of Wimbledon last year after suffering an injury, meaning he had not been able to play at the flagship games for two years.
He has made a number of sacrifices to garner the success achieved during his career, including declining a rare invitation from the late Queen Elizabeth II.
It came over ten years ago, in 2010, when Nadal admitted to refusing the invite, wanting instead to focus on his Wimbledon second-round match.
Her Majesty had asked if he would come to meet her at the All England Club — a rarity considering the Queen had not shown much interest in tennis or tennis players during her reign.
She only attended Wimbledon a handful of times, this occasion with Nadal was her fourth and final visit to the club, and the first time she had attended since 1977.
