It was exactly what the tennis world was waiting for.
Rafael Nadal made sure not to take sides heading into the Australian Open final between his compatriot Carlos Alcaraz and long-time rival Novak Djokovic.
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But he couldn’t help but enjoy a laugh with Djokovic when the 24-time slam champion took time during a dramatic decider to offer Nadal his racquet.
Nadal was seated right up the front at one end of Rod Laver Arena and was shown frequently during the broadcast.
But when Djokovic played down his end early in the fourth set, he spotted Nadal applauding a point, and seemingly asked whether the king of clay wanted to have a go.
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Nadal laughed off the question – not that the fans on centre court would’ve minded if he’d said yes.
Djokovic and Nadal played a whopping 60 times in their careers, the most meetings of any rivalry in the Open Era, with Djokovic leading 31-29.