Rafael Nadal showed no mercy towards an emotional David Ferrer as he eased into the quarter-finals of the Barcelona Open on Thursday, describing his compatriot who is winding down his career as a “pleasure to watch”.
Ferrer is set to retire after the Madrid Open next month and made a tearful exit on what was his 15th and final appearance at this tournament.
But there was no room for sentiment for Nadal, who won 6-3, 6-3 to take one step closer to a record 12th Barcelona title.
Four of those triumphs came after beating Ferrer in the final and, at the end of this latest victory, Nadal’s 37-year-old opponent saluted the crowd before placing his pink headband down on the service line.
“David is not retiring because of his level but it has been a complicated year and a half for him with injuries,” Nadal said.
Murray, Nadal look for Brisbane bounce-back after injury-hit 2018
“His level this year has still been very high and for all these years he’s been…
