Nadal showed himself in the early morning with a soccer ball at the Belo Horizonte airport

Rafa Nadal is this Sunday in Ecuadorian lands in what will be the penultimate stop of his American tour. The Spaniard arrives from Brazil, where he defeated Norwegian Casper Ruud 7-6 (4) and 7-5, in a festive exhibition match played this Saturday in Belo Horizonte, as part of Brazilian Bruno’s farewell Soares in tennis.

The Spaniard and the Norwegian have become good friends on this touras it became clear in the video posted by the number 2 in the world on his Instagram account where they can be seen playing soccer at the Belo Horizonte airport.

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There were two tennis players showing off their soccer skills along with some members of their respective technical staff turned the venue’s waiting room upside down.

“Pre-check-in at Belo Horizonte airport… Cheers for the World Cup Thanks to everyone, Brazil!“Spanish letter.

Nadal will visit Argentina, Mexico, Chile, Ecuador, Colombia and Brazil on his tour. Casper Ruud, finalist of two Grand Slams this season (Roland Garros and US Open), will be his main rival, except in Chile, where he faces local Alejandro Tabilo. This match is part of the Latin American tour that started in Buenos Aires on Wednesday the 23rd, with a victory for Nadal against Casper Ruud by 7-6(8), 6-2, while in Santiago the Spaniard beat Chilean Alejandro Tabilo 7 -6(6), 6-3.

In this exhibition match, they will play in Quito (Ecuador), in the third game of the tour. The match will be held at the Rumiñahui Coliseum, on a day where the two tennis players will carry out various activities, such as a visit to the President of the Republic, Guillermo Lasso.

This exhibition allows the ATP number 2 to once again face a Casper Ruud that he is at a high level and that this season he finished as number 3 in the world. The Norwegian reached two Grand Slam finals, at Roland Garros and the US Open, as well as played in the ATP Finals title match, all three settled, yes, with clear defeats.

The Norwegian defeated Felix Auger-Aliassime 7-6, 6-4 in their first meeting, while in the second he defeated Fritz by a tight 6-3, 4-6, 7-6. Novak Djokovic started as a strong favorite to win his sixth title in Turin and he did not disappoint, so he already has the Australian Open 2023 on his mind, something Nadal and Casper Ruud will no doubt be looking down on.

Ruud occupies third place in the ATP ranking at 23 years old. The Norwegian has won 51 games this season and received 22 losses. Both tennis players will almost certainly play the entire exhibition tour of South America, as Nadal also decided not to play this season’s Davis Cup, which is now playing in its final qualifiers.