Rafael Nadal: Roger Federer is not like Messi and I am not Ronaldo!

Rafael Nadal says he and Roger Federer’s rivalry is different to a famous one from soccer and also discussed playing tennis at the home of Real Madrid.

It is not possible to compare the skills of Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal to soccer greats Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo.

That is the view of world number one Nadal, who has given some in-depth interviews to the Spanish media ahead of the Christmas period to reflect on 2019.

The recent winner of the Mubadala World Tennis Championship spent some of that time talking about soccer in his homeland.

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Nadal was asked if he agreed with the notion he would be the equivalent of Ronaldo in soccer, while Federer would be Messi.

While the 33-year-old did not entertain the idea, you can at least see why people would make the connection.

Not only are Messi and Ronaldo two greats of their sport and long-time rivals for success in the same way as Federer and Nadal have been over the years, there are some individual stylistic similarities in the eyes of many observers.

Barcelona forward Messi is a naturally gifted talent looking to enhance his legacy over his final years, much in the same way as Federer.

Juventus star Ronaldo, along with Nadal, is defying age to maximise every ounce of production from his body, with both men possessing incredible mental strength and passion.

But the Spaniard, who is on his best form in a decade, does not feel you can compare stars from different sports, as he explained in an interview with Marca.

“No comparison is possible,” said Rafael Nadal.

“They are two completely different sports and Messi’s characteristics are not those of Federer nor are those of Cristiano like mine. Each one is as he is.”

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Nadal and Federer will do battle in a February exhibition match in Cape Town, South Africa that should break the world-record attendance achieved by the Swiss star and Alexander Zverev in Mexico this offseason.

Florentino Perez, who is the president of the soccer team Nadal supports and who Ronaldo used to play for, Real Madrid, has previously said he wants to stage a match between the two tennis stars at their home stadium, the Santiago Bernabeu.

But Nadal explained it has proven difficult to arrange due to the tennis and soccer calendars.

The 19-time Grand Slam champion also paid tribute to the support he receives at home in Spain and all over the world.

"Nadal added: “It is very difficult [to play at the Bernabeu] because of the dates in general.“On the dates you can do it, which is summer, there are fewer people in Madrid. We also have Roland Garros, Wimbledon.“I’m lucky enough to receive so much love and support from so many people. Sometimes this is more important than winning.“When I’m injured, people always ask me what I miss most about tennis: it’s this feeling of going out on court, seeing the fans that want to see you, fans who want to support you wherever it is in the world.“It’s a difficult feeling to explain, but it gives me great personal satisfaction. It suggests that you’ve done well on and off court with good behaviour. The personal side is always more important than the professional side.”"

Rafael Nadal did his popularity in Spain no harm with his magnificent exploits at last month’s Davis Cup Finals in Madrid, where he won all eight of his rubbers across singles and doubles.

He will also lead the country in the ATP Cup at the start of next month, before his attention turns to the Australian Open from January 20.

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Nadal is looking to provide competition to defending champion Novak Djokovic in Melbourne and heads into the event with significant momentum.

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