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One of the world's greatest tennis stars is ready to say: "I do!" Rafael Nadal is engaged to his long-term girlfriend, Mery Perelló! The beautiful couple, who have been in a committed relationship for 14 years, are set to tie the knot this autumn in a Mallorca-based ceremony. ¡HOLA! USA's sister publication, HOLA! Spain has revealed that Rafa proposed to Mery, also known as Xisca, back in May during a romantic trip to Rome, but the couple kept the happy news private for the first eight months of their engagement.
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Rafa previously hinted to HOLA!'s sister publication HELLO! that he would love to have children with Mery, explaining: "Obviously, I have the intention of forming a family. I love children and I would like my children to do what they like." It has already been a busy year for Rafael, who recently came second place at the 2019 Australian Open. Although the famed tennis player advanced to the final without losing a set, he lost in the finale against Novak Djokovic. Speaking about the loss, he told reporters: "What I need is time, I need work and I need more weeks like this one. That’s really the only thing that I hope, is to have the chance to keep practicing well and to have the chance to keep playing with healthy conditions. I can’t be sad. It would not be fair to be sad. I played against a player that today was better than me."
Rafa was accompanied by Mery during the trip. Speaking about her attendance during an on-court interview, he said: "I had a chance to visit Sydney, I haven't been there before. So I was knowing a little bit of the city and we enjoyed it. After ten years finally, my girlfriend gets a wildcard to come here."
Although the 32-year-old has kept his relationship relatively private over the years, he is an avid tweeter, and recently sent his best wishes to Andy Murray after he announced his retirement from tennis. Taking to the social media network, Rafa wrote: "Congrats @andy_murray for all your achievements all these years. It was great to play against you all these years. Good luck with everything!" The US Open Tennis official Twitter account praised his message to the British player, replying: "Two brilliant matches from Flushing Meadows... Two guys who showed nothing but respect for one another."