“I am very happy that my last tournament will be the Davis Cup final, in which I represent my country,” said tennis icon Rafael Nadal when he announced the impending end of his great career in a video on October 10th . “This completes a circle for me, because one of my first great moments of happiness was the final [des Davis Cups – Anm. d. Red] in Seville in 2004.”
It was the first of his five Davis Cup triumphs with Spain. Title number six at the end of this year’s final round in front of the home fans in Malaga (November 19th to 24th) would be the icing on the cake – but it is not absolutely necessary. Because it is already clear: Nadal, one of the best players in tennis history, is saying goodbye. The Spaniard set numerous records. He won the French Open, the Grand Slam tournament on clay in Paris, 14 times.
Most recently two defeats in his “living room” in Paris
“It’s of course a difficult decision that took me some time to make. But in this life everything has a beginning and an end,” Nadal said in his video message about his impending retirement. “The reality is that the last two years have been very difficult. I don’t think I have been able to play without restrictions.” The “clay court king” was repeatedly plagued by injuries.
Nadal had already announced in May 2023 that he wanted to end his glorious career in 2024. Nadal made his last appearance on the Grand Slam stage last May at the French Open, when he lost to German tennis star Alexander Zverev in three sets in the first round.
Nadal played in Roland Garros for the last time at the Olympic Games in Paris. In the second round he failed against eventual Olympic champion Novak Djokovic. Nadal formed the “Big Three” with the Serb and the Swiss Roger Federer, who retired in 2022: The trio dominated men’s tennis for almost two decades.
Triumphs at all Grand Slam tournaments and Olympic champion
In his career, Nadal won 92 tournaments and the Spaniard was at the top of the world rankings for a total of 209 weeks. Nadal not only won several times in Paris, but also at the other three Grand Slam tournaments. He triumphed twice at the Australian Open in Melbourne, twice at Wimbledon and four times at the US Open in New York.
Nadal also became Olympic champion twice: in Beijing in 2008 in singles and in 2016 in Rio de Janeiro in doubles, alongside Marc López.
Defeated Pat Cash at age 14
Nadal grew up on the Mediterranean island of Mallorca. Two of his uncles were professional footballers and one earned his living as a tennis player. As a child, “Rafa” successfully tried both sports, but ultimately chose tennis. As a 14-year-old, he already made people sit up and take notice when he defeated former Wimbledon champion Pat Cash in an exhibition game in 2000. “He made some incredible winning shots,” the Australian later recalled. “I was 38 at the time and still hitting the ball pretty well.”
A year later – at 15 – Nadal was registered as a professional player. At the end of 2004, as an 18-year-old, he not only celebrated his first ATP tournament victory, but also won the Davis Cup with Spain. Since then, Nadal has been a fixture in world tennis.
Rare bone disease
However, his running-intensive style of play with powerful hits also took its toll. During his career, Nadal was repeatedly set back by injuries and operations. Müller-Weiss syndrome in particular bothered him. In this rare disease, bone tissue in the scaphoid bone of the foot dies.
After his last Grand Slam victory in Paris in 2022, Nadal often had to cancel tournament starts due to injuries. Therefore, his resignation was not unexpected. After his 23-year professional career, Rafael Nadal, who continues to live in Mallorca, will now have more time for his wife and son – and for the tennis academy he set up on his home island.
The October 10 article was updated on November 14.
