"Enjoying?" - Rafael Nadal teases Casper Ruud with a wink as he cheers for Viktor Hovland at Ryder Cup 2023

Modified Oct 02, 2023 03:22 GMT

Rafael Nadal playfully teased fellow clay-court specialist Casper Ruud recently after the Norwegian’s compatriot Viktor Hovland helped Team Europe win the 2023 Ryder Cup in Rome.

The Spaniard shared a clip from Hovland’s singles match against Collin Morikawa, where the 26-year-old was leading 3-0 after seven holes.

At the Ryder Cup, Hovland was part of Team Europe, which consisted of some of the best players from the continent, such as Rory McIlroy, Jon Rahm, Robert MacIntyre, and others.

Team Europe faced Team USA, which featured Morikawa, Scottie Scheffler, Brooks Koepka, Max Homa, and others.

Hovland played five matches at the Ryder Cup, winning three of them. He partnered with Ludvig Åberg in the foursomes format, where two players alternate shots using one ball. They beat Scheffler and Koepka 9 and 7 on Saturday morning, setting a record for the largest foursomes win in an 18-hole Ryder Cup match.

In the singles format, where each player plays his own ball against an opponent, Hovland faced Morikawa. The Norwegian eventually sealed his victory with a par on the 15th hole, winning 4 and 3.

Team Europe went on to win five of the 12 singles matches and clinched the Ryder Cup with a final score of 16.5 to 11.5.

Nadal posted a clip from Hovland’s match on his Instagram story on Sunday, October 1, and tagged Ruud in the caption with a winking face emoji.

"@casperruud…enjoying? 😉," Nadal wrote on Instagram.

Rafael Nadal rekindles his passion for Golf during ongoing injury rehab

Rafael Nadal recently competed in a local golf tournament in the Balearic Islands, where he currently sits in joint-74th place after the first day.

The 37-year-old joined his friend and teammate Bartolome Salva-Vidal at the V Hexagonal Circuit in the Balearic Islands, a local golf tournament. He scored a “bogey” on holes four, seven, and 15.

The Spaniard seemed happy with his performance, as he shared it with his fans on Instagram.

"An amazing day… more pics to come…," he wrote on Instagram.

The 22-time Grand Slam champion had undergone surgery earlier this year to treat his injury and he hopes to come back in 2024. His uncle Toni recently gave positive news about his injury recovery. He said that his nephew is aiming to play at the 2024 Australian Open if his rehab goes well.

"Rafa is fine, recovering. If everything goes well, he wants to return to the courts for the 2024 Australian Open, " the veteran coach told El Desmarque.

The Spaniard has only played a total of four matches this season, with a win/loss record of 1-3.