Rafael Nadal said he has left both a sporting and personal legacy after retiring from professional tennis on Tuesday at the Davis Cup in Malaga.
The 38-year-old was beaten in the opening singles rubber of the quarter-finals as Netherlands defeated Spain 2-1 to reach the final four.
Nadal, a 22-time Grand Slam winner, enjoyed a glittering and historic career over the past 23 years.
‘I leave with the peace of mind that I have left a legacy, which I really feel is not just a sporting one but a personal one,’ Nadal told fans in Malaga in a speech during a ceremony to honour his retirement.
‘I understand that the love I have received, if it was just for what happened on the court, would not be the same.’
Nadal paid credit to many who have helped him along the way, including his uncle Toni Nadal, who coached him as a child and for a large part of his career.
‘The titles, the numbers are there, so people probably know that, but the way that I would like to be remembered more is like a good person, from a small village in Mallorca,’ continued Nadal.
‘I had the luck that I had my uncle who was a tennis coach in my village when I was a very, very small kid, and a great family that supports me in every moment … I just want to be remembered as a good person, a kid that followed their dreams and achieved (even) more than what I had dreamed.’
Nadal was celebrated with a video montage on the many screens around the Martin Carpena arena in Malaga where over 10,000 fans saw his career come to a close.
Former rivals Roger Federer, Novak Djokovic and Andy Murray, as well as Serena Williams and other tennis greats, left messages in the video, alongside former Spanish football stars including Raul and Andres Iniesta, who retired from playing in October. ALSO READ: Andrés Iniesta, former Barça & Spain legend, retires from playing football, aged 40.
‘I leave the world of professional tennis having encountered many good friends along the way,’ said Nadal in his emotional speech.
The Spaniard said he hoped to be a ‘good ambassador’ for tennis in the years to come and was not afraid to begin his retirement.
‘I am calm because I have received an education to take on what is coming next,’ he explained. ‘I have a great family around me who help me with everything that I need every day.’
Spain’s Davis Cup captain David Ferrer also paid tribute to Nadal.
‘There are people who will be remembered for their achievements in life, others until the end of their days, and others eternally,’ said Ferrer. ‘You will be remembered eternally.’
Nadal thanked fans in Spain in his speech but also around the rest of the world where he found many admirers.
In Paris, where he won a record 14 French Open titles and earned the nickname the ‘King of Clay’, his image was projected onto the night sky in front of the Eiffel Tower.
‘I am crying as we speak … Rafael Nadal… What an absolute icon of sport period! There will never be another one like Rafa!’ wrote former world number one Boris Becker on social media platform X.
Nadal’s background and career.
Rafael Nadal was born on the island of Mallorca in June 1986. His father Sebastián was a businessman, his mother Ana gave up working to raise her children.
One of his uncles, Miguel Ángel Nadal, played professional football for Barcelona, although Rafa grew up to be a Real Madrid fan.
As a child, Nadal played football in the streets of his hometown of Manacor, before focusing on tennis under the coaching of another uncle, Toni Nadal, who guided his career from 2005 to 2017.
Nadal’s ferocious left-hand top-spin forehand was to become his trademark shot while his uncle’s focus on attitude shaped the player and the man.
‘When I was young my uncle said to me, if you throw your racket I will stop coaching you,’ Nadal said. ‘If I make a bad shot, it is my fault — not the racket’s.’
Fellow Mallorcan Carlos Moyá, also his coach in his closing years on tour, was impressed by the youngster.
‘I could see, by the sheer intensity with which he trained, that he was super-ambitious and desperate to improve. He hit every shot as if his life depended on it,’ said Moya.
Nadal turned professional at 14 and made his Wimbledon debut in 2003 at 17.
At 18, he was part of the Spanish team that won the Davis Cup, playing, and winning, one singles match in the final.
Nadal won his first major title in 2005 at his maiden French Open, two days after turning 19. He won his last, a 14th Roland Garros, 17 years later.
Nadal amassed 92 titles and was a two-time Olympic gold medallist despite playing in an era which also boasted Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic, the two other members of tennis’s dominant ‘Big Three’ for more a decade.
Federer faced Nadal in 14 Grand Slam finals winning only four, the Swiss player ending his career with 20 majors, two fewer than the Spaniard.
Nadal’s physical playing style took a toll – injury sidelined him from at least 11 Grand Slam events.
But he kept fighting back. After the second half of his 2021 season had been wiped out, he returned to break Federer’s record at the 2022 Australian Open and added a 22nd major at the French Open just after his 36th birthday.
“If you don’t lose, you can’t enjoy victories. You have to accept both things,” Nadal said.
After that victory, he insisted he was not concerned if Djokovic broke the record.
‘It’s something that does not bother me if Novak wins 23 and I stay at 22. I think my happiness will not change at all, not even one percent.’
Djokovic won three titles the following year to take his total to 24.
Nadal faced Djokovic 60 times, the last of which was at the Paris Olympics in July in a clash which proved to be Nadal’s final competitive singles match before he announced his intention to retire.
The pair fought out the longest Grand Slam final of all time — five hours and 53 minutes at the 2012 Australian Open in which the Serb triumphed.
In his private life, Nadal started dating Mery when he was 19 and they married in 2019. They had their first child, Rafael, in October 2022.
‘I love the sea,’ he has said repeatedly. He owns a yacht and likes fishing and has become more than a very capable golfer.
I’m excited to bring to an end a long and beautiful part of my life, relishing these last moments as normal, accepting that everything has a beginning and an end.’
For your fighting spirit.
For your humility and kindness.
For everything you’ve done for tennis.
Gracias, Rafa. pic.twitter.com/tDicj5KUI5
— Davis Cup (@DavisCup) November 19, 2024
Rafa Nadal during his retirement speech:
“The titles, numbers, they’re there. People probably know that. The way I’d like to be remembered more is like a good person from a small village in Mallorca.” 🥹
— The Tennis Letter (@TheTennisLetter) November 19, 2024
Rafa Nadal with tears in his eyes as he says goodbye to tennis.
His family is in tears.
We’re all in tears for this man.
The greatest fighter in history… Rafael Nadal Parera.
You. Are. Infinite. 🥹
🇪🇸❤️🇪🇸
pic.twitter.com/mMCrqESpLR— The Tennis Letter (@TheTennisLetter) November 19, 2024
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