Rafael Nadal has hailed the determination of Spain team-mate Roberto Bautista Agut, who sadly lost his father this week before helping Spain to Davis Cup glory.
Bautista Agut travelled home on Thursday after his father was tragically taken ill.
The Spanish federation confirmed shortly after that their star’s dad had lost his life.
Bravely, the 31-year-old returned to action to play a huge part in helping his country lift the Davis Cup by beating Canada on Sunday evening.
Bautista Agut helped seal the win by beating Felix Auger-Aliassime in the opening match.
Rafael Nadal then clinched the triumph by swatting aside Denis Shapovalov 6-3 7-6 (9-7), before paying tribute to his team-mate with a classy message.
“I have won all 8 games, but here the person who has been vital has been Roberto Bautista,” Nadal told Vamos.
“He is an example for the rest of my life.”
Ahead of the final, Nadal explained just how difficult it has been this week for the Spain team.
“There are a lot of emotions out there,” he said.
“We went through a lot of things this week, honestly, every day.
“I went to my room at 4:24 in the morning today. Two days ago the father of Roberto passed away.
“Today Pablo and Marcel were not well. A lot of things.
“So we needed to find a way. We knew it was going to be a very tough battle out there, not a lot of chances.
“We can’t be happier than to be where we are today.”