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Tom Hamilton, Senior WriterOct 10, 2024, 05:41 AM ET
- • Joined ESPN in 2011
• Covered two Olympics, a pair of Rugby World Cups and two British & Irish Lions tours
• Previously rugby editor, and became senior writer in 2018
Tennis great Rafael Nadal has announced he will retire from the sport at the end of the year.
Nadal, 38, has enjoyed an astonishing career that has seen him win 22 Grand Slams, including 14 French Open titles. But he has been hampered by injuries in recent years, and he announced on Thursday that this will be his final year playing the sport.
Nadal will play for Spain against the Netherlands in the Davis Cup in Malaga from Nov. 19-21. That will be his final act on the tennis court, in a sport where he stood alongside Roger Federer, Novak Djokovic and Andy Murray as four modern greats in the men’s game.
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“I’m here to let you know that I am retiring from professional tennis,” Nadal said in a video statement posted to social media.
“The reality is that it has been some difficult years, these two especially. I don’t think I have been able to play without limitations. It is obviously a difficult decision, one that takes me some time to make.
“But, in this life, everything has a beginning and an end. And I think it’s an appropriate time to put an end to a career that has been long and much more successful than I could have ever imagined.
“I am very excited that my last tournament will be the final of the Davis Cup and representing my country. I think I’ve come full circle since one of my first great joys as a professional tennis player was the Davis Cup final in Sevilla in 2004. I feel super, super lucky for all the things I’ve been able to experience. I want to thank the entire tennis industry.”
Nadal went pro in 2001 and won the 2005 French Open at his first attempt. From there he established remarkable dominance on clay where he won 14 tournaments in 18 years at Roland Garros (2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020 and 2022).
He also triumphed the Australian Open (2009, 2022), Wimbledon (2008, 2010), and the US Open (2010, 2013, 2017, 2019).
Rafael Nadal will retire after playing for Spain at the Davis Cup in Malaga next month. Daniel Irungu/EPA
His victory over Roger Federer on Centre Court at the All England Club in 2008 is widely regarded to be one of the finest matches the men’s sport has ever seen, where Nadal triumphed 6-4, 6-4, 6-7(5), 6-7(8), 9-7. He also won the 2009 Olympic gold in men’s singles, and 2016 in men’s doubles, as well as enjoying 209 weeks as world No. 1.
Nadal is already immortalised at Roland Garros with a statue outside Court Philippe-Chatrier, but it will be his dominance on clay for which will remain synonymous in retirement.
In recent years, Nadal has struggled with injury. He has Mueller-Weiss syndrome in his foot — a condition that saw him use numbing injections to get through the 2022 French Open — and has struggled with abdominal injuries in the past couple of years.
He missed this year’s Australian Open, but did manage to play in the French Open, where he lost in the first round to Alexander Zverev. But his focus this year was to play at Roland Garros both in the French Open and Paris Olympics. He managed to get through to the Olympics, where he teamed up with Carlos Alcaraz in the men’s doubles.
However, it will be in Malaga where he bows out from the sport next month.
Nadal’s 23-year career contains several remarkable feats. His record at Roland Garros reads 112 victories and just four defeats. And in a display of his incredible longevity, there were 13 years between his two Australian Open triumphs — 2009 and 2022. He made 30 Grand Slam finals appearances — winning 22 — and lifted 92 ATP Tour-level singles titles.
He also won four Davis Cup titles, and it is in that tournament with Spain where he will bow out from the sport.
“I feel super lucky for all the things I’ve been able to experience,” Nadal said. “I want to thank the entire tennis industry, all the people involved in this sport, my longtime colleagues, especially my great rivals.
“I’ve spent many, many hours with them, and I’ve lived many moments that I’ll remember for the rest of my life. Talking about my team is a little bit more difficult for me, because in the end, my team has been a very important part of my life. They’re not just co-workers. They are friends.
“And finally, you the fans — I can’t thank you enough for what you’ve made me feel. You give me the energy I’ve needed every moment, really.
“Everything I have experienced has been a dream come true. I leave with the absolute peace of mind of having given my best, of having made an effort in every way I can only end by saying, a thousand thanks to you all. See you soon.”
