Sports

Roger Federer said he'll never dress like Rafael Nadal — here's why

Nadal sleeveless
Rafa Nadal wearing a sleeveless shirt. Not everyone's a fan. Getty Images/Business Insider
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  • Roger Federer completed his latest domination of the Aussie Open with a 5-set win in the Final on Sunday, his 20th career Grand Slam title.
  • Rafa Nadal stole headlines earlier in the tournament when he wore a sleeveless shirt at the Australian Open recently.
  • It is not a look that Federer dares to replicate.
  • The reason is quite simple, according to Federer.


World number one-ranked tennis player Rafa Nadal caused a racket this month.

Not because he was forced to withdraw from the Australian Open due to injury, but because he went on the court to play wearing a sleeveless shirt.

It is not a trend we can expect Nadal's playing rival Roger Federer to replicate. Not because Federer doesn't love Nadal's dress sense, but because, he claims, it is an impossible act to follow.

Rafa Nadal and Roger Federer
Roger Federer and Rafa Nadal.  Getty Images

Federer was asked if he would ever go sleeveless, like Nadal. "That's not going to happen," Federer said, according to The Telegraph. "You know why, it's pretty simple."

The reason? "My arms are not as big as his."

Federer did add that he "loves" Nadal's look. And, if you needed reminding, here's how Nadal's arms look.

Rafa Nadal's arm
A close-up of the sleeveless shirt.  Getty Images

Federer completed his latest domination of the Aussie Open with a 5-set win in the Final on Sunday, his 20th career Grand Slam title. However, before that, he took time out of his schedule to write a letter to Nadal.

"I wrote to Rafa late [on Tuesday] night before I went to bed," he said. "It was the last thing I did, to make sure he was okay. It was not nice to see a rival and friend go out [with an injury]."

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Alan Dawson is Insider's combat sports correspondent. He moved to Las Vegas indefinitely after being shortlisted twice for Sports Journalist of the Year in 2020. He has twice been credited by the Boxing Writer's Association of America, is a Hall of Fame voter, and an MMA Journalists Association member. He joined Insider in 2017 as a reporter, was promoted to senior reporter in 2019, and then again to a correspondent in 2020, after establishing Insider Inc. as one of the best independent publications to follow in the fight sports industries. He is read by millions of people around the world every month. He has investigated the intersection of organized crime and boxing, uncovered possible bribery in sport, and has been ringside for some of the most iconic moments in combat sports including Fury-Wilder 2, Khabib Nurmagomedov's retirement, and Davis-Garcia. He has taken assignments in Europe, the Middle East, and across the U.S., and was one of the few credentialed reporters to cover the UFC during the pandemic era of sports when the company held MMA events behind-closed-doors in a bubble environment on Yas Island, Abu Dhabi. Dawson has been featured on Morning Kombat on Showtime, on BBC and GB News in the UK, and The Sun in Ireland. His work has been cited by CNN, The Telegraph, Forbes, USA Today, IB Times, Boxing Scene, World Boxing News, Sherdog, Bloody Elbow, The Sun, The Mirror, and Metro, as well as national media in Finland, Ukraine, Russia, Indonesia, Singapore, and Vietnam. Follow him on Twitter at @alandawsonsport.