Van de Zandschulp reflects on his victory over Nadal: "He was one of my idols".
Last week, Botic van de Zandschulp ended Rafael Nadal's career. He will forever be remembered as the last player to face and even beat the Spaniard on a professional tennis court.
In the Davis Cup quarter-finals, the Netherlands eliminated the host country from the Final 8.
In an interview with AS, the Dutchman, ranked 80th in the world, looked back on his fine performance against the king of clay.
It was the first time in three meetings that he had beaten Nadal: "He had announced his retirement, he had said that the Davis Cup would be his last tournament.
I had time to think about the fact that I could play against him. Then there was the doubt of whether he was going to be on court or not.
During the week, he trained a lot," says van de Zandschulp.
"It was a tough match. He was one of my idols when I was growing up. So it was complicated to play against him. Maybe it was his last match, maybe it wasn't... It wasn't easy."
Davis Cup: between reforms, criticism and national culture 
The paradox dividing tennis: exhausted players and a saturated calendar, yet ever more exhibitions 
Training future champions: spotlight on the decline of the French public model facing private academies 
Is padel threatening tennis? Inside the revolution shaking up the established order 
