Ukrainian football star Andriy Shevchenko Football legends Ronaldo and Andriy Shevchenko will be among the big names to compete against world tennis number one Rafael Nadal at his first live poker tournament next week, organisers said Thursday. Retired Brazilian striker Ronaldo and Ukrainian Shevchenko will join poker buff Nadal at the charity tournament in the Czech capital Prague on December 12, said online gaming firm PokerStars, with whom Nadal has an endorsement deal.
"Ronaldo has always been a hero of mine and I'm looking forward to taking him on at the poker table," Nadal, 27, said in a statement released by PokerStars.
"There are many similarities between sport and poker strategy, so it will be good to see how he translates his game from the football field to the poker felt."
Nadal has been a fervent poker player since a knee injury sidelined him from his day job last year, but had so far only played in online poker tournaments.
He will be competing for a 100,000-euro (135,000-dollar) charity prize pool in the tournament -- part of the European Poker Tour, to be held from December 8 to 18.
Dutch field hockey champion Fatima Moreira De Melo, world number one poker player Daniel Negreanu and Italian ski legend Alberto Tomba will also play in the event.
Nadal has made a blistering return to tennis since his career-threatening knee injury, winning 10 titles and closing out the 2013 season in the number one spot.
Source: AFP