Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic at the press conference in Nur-Sultan, Kazakhstan

Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic held a press conference at the Ritz-Carlton Astana in Kazakhstan

Rafa: "I'm very happy to be here. The wedding was held, we celebrated as we wanted, prepared for a long time. But now is tennis time and I'm happy to share this moment with Novak and benefit the charity. I have to thank Bulat Utemuratov for the invitation. Thank you Novak for supporting this charity match. It's really nice to be back in this country, it's great to be here. I could not imagine how beautiful this country is until my first visit. I hope this match will attract a lot of interest among the fans, especially among the children."

Novak: "Здравствуйте, салем. You speak Russian, and I know a little bit of that language. This is my first time in Kazakhstan, in this beautiful city. Thank you Rafael for playing with me again.  I hope that one day we will play an ATP tournament in Kazakhstan. It is important for our sport that a person like Utemuratov provides support to tennis. I look forward to playing tennis with players from Kazakhstan."

An exhibition match will take place at 7 pm (local time) at Barys Arena

Also today, Rafa and Novak will meet with President of Kazakhstan Kassym-Jomart Tokayev and former President Nursultan Nazarbayev.

Photos: KTF;  EFE; Максим Огненный; Борис Юрьев