Rafael Nadal mistakenly sat on my bench, said sorry after winning: Moya recalls first match vs Nadal

Rafael Nadal and Carlos Moya have known each other for a while. The two Mallorcans shared a deep bond long before Moya was hired to be Nadal's coach in 2017, and that is evident when you watch Moya's reactions in the box during Nadal's matches. The Palma native lives every match with his fellow islander.

Recently, Carlos Moya recalled an incident from 2003 - when Rafael Nadal apologized to him for winning what was their first competitive meeting on tour.

When Rafael Nadal announced himself to the world

The 2003 Hamburg Masters was a breakthrough tournament in Rafael Nadal's career.

Coming into the main draw as a qualifier, Nadal took out Paul-Henri Mathieu and second seed Carlos Moya in straight sets before falling to Argentine Gaston Gaudio in the third round.

Despite his straight sets loss to Gaudio, Nadal gave the world a glimpse of a special claycourt player in the making.

Rafael Nadal aged 16 in Hamburg 2003

In a video posted on the Twitter handle of the Rafa Nadal Academy, Nadal's most famous victim in the tournament spent some time reminiscing that first meeting between the two friends.

Moya revealed how back then none of them thought he would end up becoming Nadal's coach and working with him at the latter's tennis academy.

"Who was going to tell me that 15 years after that match, I was going to be here, at the Rafa Nadal Academy working with Rafa," he said.

Carlos Moya also talked about the special bond he shared with Nadal back then. The two were good friends and training partners even at that time, aside from being on-court rivals.

"That day we were rivals," Moya said. "We were friends, training partners. And that day we were rivals for the first time in an official championship."

Moya also shared a funny story revealing how clumsy Nadal was when he was young. The then 16-year-old sat on Moya's bench after walking on to the court instead of his own!

"At those times, they put the player's names on the bench. He (Nadal) entered first and went to sit on my bench. He obviously did not notice so I went in and said 'Rafa, this is my place, you have to go to yours'."

A 16 year old Rafael Nadal taking Carlos Moya's place on the bench

But his seat on the court was not the only thing Nadal took away from Moya that day. Rafael Nadal shocked the tennis world by beating the tournament favorite and World No. 4 in straight sets.

A few days short of turning 17, the southpaw ousted his idol 7-5 6-4 in two tightly contested sets. This was Nadal's second big victory on tour, after beating another top 10 player Albert Costa a month earlier in Monte Carlo.

'I am sorry' - Rafael Nadal after beating Carlos Moya

But the win over Carlos Moya was special for Rafael Nadal in more ways than one. Aside from being Nadal's idol, Moya was also a much more decorated player than Albert Costa.

Still, Rafael Nadal was muted in his celebrations after winning match point. He was very respectful of his idol, and even apologized to Moya during the handshake at the net.

"He respected me and when he beat me he was very shy, nervous and said, 'I'm sorry I won'.

"I said, 'No worries'. I understood that it was first of the many times that he would beat me," Moya said.

💭 @Charlymoya recalled the 1st meeting with @RafaelNadal (Hamburg 2003) 💭- “I am sorry, I won”- "No worries” pic.twitter.com/7an7qetfZi

— Rafa Nadal Academy by Movistar (@rnadalacademy) July 15, 2020

Rafael Nadal went on to do much more than just upsetting a top 5 player in an ATP Masters tournament. The Spaniard is now a 19-time Grand Slam champion and has a record 12 French Open titles to his name, along with numerous other unprecedented achievements.

Carlos Moya: Rafael Nadal's tennis idol turned coach

Rafael Nadal at the net after beating Carlo Moya at Hamburg 2003

Rafael Nadal has repeatedly said that, unlike most other athletes, he didn't have any specific idol while growing up. If he had to idolize anyone in life, it would be his father Sebastian Nadal.

But Nadal has also said that if he were to name the sporting icons he came close to idolizing, they would be his fellow Mallorcan tennis player Carlos Moya and golf legend Tiger Woods.

Carlos Moya was the No. 1 player in the world in 1999 for a brief spell. The Spaniard had won the French Open the previous year, and spent two weeks at the summit of the rankings early in 1999.

Although his reign at the top was short-lived, Moya still has the unique the distinction of being the first male Spanish player in history to be ranked No. 1.

Carlos Moya and Rafael Nadal in 2003

Rafael Nadal, who had just chosen tennis over football as a career back in 1999, dreamed of repeating his fellow islander's achievements. And let's just say he went a little further than that.

Soon after turning pro, Rafael Nadal was playing the best players in the world in 2003. The then skinny Mallorcan was already on the radar as one of the most promising up-and-coming players in the world.

And Nadal quickly proved his mettle by defeating his idol, the then World No. 4 Carlos Moya, in straight sets.