Rafael Nadal News: Rafa Remains Humble Despite Defeat To Novak Djokovic

The world's No.1 tennis player, Rafael Nadal, might have lost to Novak Djokovic for the second straight time, but the Mallorcan Bull remained gracious in defeat after delivering a very humble speech following their championship match of the ATP World Tour Final at O2 Arena on Monday.

Nadal has secured the year-end world's No.1 ranking after reaching the final of the Tour Final, but Monday's 3-6, 4-6  loss to Djokovic served as a warning shot that the Serb is beginning to break down his game very well.

However, despite the competitive nature of his final match with Djokovic, the 27-year-old Nadal still received the admiration of thousands of tennis fans in the arena with his sportsmanlike post-game speech.

"Hello everybody," says the defeated finalist. "First thing, I want to say is congratulate a super player like Novak. I wish you the best of luck in the Davis Cup, you deserve it," Nadal said via Rafael Nadal fans.com

"This is probably one of the best seasons of my career and playing this match in this stadium is just fantastic for me. Thanks to all the crowd for all the support, not only today but around the week and all the crowd that supported me. See you next year," he added.

Comeback of all comebacks

Nadal has now lost to Djokovic in their last two meetings since he vanquished the Serb star in four sets in the final of the U.S. Open championships.

Nevertheless, the Spaniard feels very content regarding the outcome of the season as he racked up 10 career singles title, including the French and U.S. Open crowns, after sitting out for seven months to rehabilitate his nagging knee injury.

Moreover, the 2013 season saw the return of Nadal to the top of the ATP Tour World Rankings for the first time in almost three years.

Djokovic, on the other hand, captured the Australian Open last January but failed to another Grand Slam title to his haul despite reaching the finals of the Wimbledon and U.S. Open, and semis of the French Open. However, the Serb finished the year strong by winning his last four tournaments such as the China Open, the Shanghai and Paris Masters and ATP Tour Finals.