Rafael Nadal Announces Last Match at Davis Cup Finals
10.28.24
After an illustrious career spanning over two decades, Rafael Nadal announces that he will retire at the Davis Cup Finals in his home country of Spain. He won 22 Grand Slam titles, including 14 of them being attained at Roland Garros. His clay court dominance dubbed him the nickname, “King of Clay.”
“Hello everyone, I’m here to let you know that I am retiring from professional tennis,” Nadal said in a video he posted on social media. “The reality is that it has been some difficult years, these last two especially. I don’t think I have been able to play without limitations.
“It is obviously a difficult decision, one that has taken me some time to make. But in this life, everything has a beginning and an end.
That video has now racked up almost 160 million views and 4.4 million likes on Instagram alone, with countless celebrities and professional athletes leaving their congratulatory messages.
In the last two years, three of the aptly named Big Four have announced their retirements, including Roger Federer and Andy Murray just a few months ago. Many tennis fans believe that with the slow exit of the Big Four, the new era is ushering in with the next generation with players like Carlos Alcaraz, Jannik Sinner and Americans like Taylor Fritz and Frances Tiafoe.
Nadal suffered many injuries throughout his career, but what he was known for on court was his grit and determination. Arguably, one of his most notable titles and match in the history of the sport was defeating Roger Federer in the finals of Wimbledon in 2008. The final spanned seven hours with almost five hours of play and two rain delays.
A five-time finalist at the Miami Open, Nadal also racked up 36 Masters 1000 titles out 53 finals that he made. He is second behind Novak Djokovic when it comes to the title count. His first ever Masters 1000 final happened to be in Miami in 2005 when he lost to Federer in a tightly contested five set match.
The Davis Cup Finals are set to run November 19 through 24. Spain’s first match is on the 19th against the Netherlands.
