Rafael Nadal is retiring from tennis at 38

MADRID (AP) — Rafael Nadal is retiring from skilled tennis at age 38, he introduced Thursday, after profitable 22 Grand Slam titles — 14 on the French Open — throughout an unprecedented period he shared with rivals Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic.

Nadal has competed occasionally the previous two seasons due to accidents and mentioned subsequent month’s Davis Cup finals will mark his farewell to the game. He had hip surgical procedure in 2023 and entered simply two of the previous eight main tournaments.

“The truth is that it has been some troublesome years, these final two, particularly. I don’t assume I’ve been in a position to play with out limitations,” Nadal mentioned in a video message. “It’s clearly a troublesome determination, one which has taken me a while to make. However on this life, every thing has a starting and an finish.”

Nadal’s unrelenting, bodily type of play — each level pursued as if it had been his final, sprinting and sliding into place for that high-bouncing bullwhip of a lefty forehand — made him one of many greats of the sport and the unquestioned King of Clay.

His file 14 French Open championships are greater than anybody, man or lady, received at any one of many 4 main tournaments, a dominance celebrated by a statue of Nadal close to the principle entrance to the grounds of Roland Garros and within the shadow of its fundamental stadium, Court docket Philippe Chatrier.

In a outcome that symbolized the place issues stood for his physique, and profession, he exited within the French Open first spherical this yr, a straight-set loss to eventual runner-up Alexander Zverev.

Nadal returned to that website in southwest Paris for the Summer time Olympics, the place he misplaced to outdated rival Djokovic within the second spherical of singles and reached the quarterfinals of males’s doubles with Carlos Alcaraz. Nadal hasn’t performed since. His goodbye will even come whereas representing Spain within the Davis Cup at Malaga.

“Your legacy received’t be matched,” Alcaraz, who’s broadly seen as Nadal’s inheritor in Spanish tennis, mentioned Thursday. “I’ve loved you and I’ll miss you very a lot if you retire after the Davis Cup.”

Soccer greats Cristiano Ronaldo and Kylian Mbappé had been amongst stars from the sports activities world additionally paying tribute to Nadal.

Along with his French Open triumphs, Nadal received 4 trophies on the U.S. Open and two apiece at Wimbledon and the Australian Open, giving him a profession Grand Slam.

“It’s the applicable time to place an finish to a profession that has been lengthy and far more profitable than I might have ever imagined,” Nadal mentioned.

His final pair of main titles arrived in 2022, at Melbourne and Paris, pushing him forward of Federer, who held the boys’s file of 20 Grand Slam titles when he introduced his retirement at age 41. Federer bid adieu in late 2022 by teaming with Nadal in a doubles match on the Laver Cup.

Each have since been surpassed by Djokovic, 37, who’s as much as 24 majors.

A lot of Nadal’s success was seen, pretty or not, by way of the prism of his encounters with Federer and Djokovic. The tennis world, and many exterior of it, had been consumed with the controversy over which was most deserving of the “GOAT” — “Best Of All-Time” — moniker. The world, tennis or in any other case, was fascinated by their matchups, their differing types and personalities.

Who amongst those that witnessed it might presumably overlook Nadal vs. Federer within the 2008 Wimbledon ultimate? Or Nadal vs. Djokovic within the 2022 French Open quarterfinals? Or Nadal vs. Djokovic within the 2012 Australian Open ultimate? And so forth.

Nadal performed Djokovic 60 instances, a file for 2 males within the Open period; Djokovic leads 31-29 total, whereas Nadal leads 5-4 in Slam finals.

“You’ve gotten impressed hundreds of thousands of kids to begin taking part in tennis and I feel that’s in all probability (the) best achievement anybody can want for,” Novak Djokovic mentioned on Instagram. “Your tenacity, dedication, combating spirit goes to be taught for many years. Your legacy will reside eternally … Thanks for pushing me to the very restrict so many instances in our rivalry that has impacted me probably the most as a participant.”

Nadal met Federer 40 instances; Nadal led 24-16 total, together with 6-3 in Slam finals.

“Thanks for the unforgettable recollections and all of your unimaginable achievements within the recreation we love,” Federer informed Nadal through social media.

It’s actually apt that Nadal’s final main title got here on the French Open (beating Djokovic alongside the best way) two years in the past, and whereas getting painkilling injections for continual ache in his left foot. He repeatedly handled, and regularly overcame, varied harm points through the years, and his 2023 and 2024 seasons had been each restricted due to hip and stomach muscle issues.

Nadal harm his hip flexor throughout a second-round loss on the Australian Open in January 2023, and wound up lacking the remainder of the yr; there was an operation for that in June.

After briefly making a comeback this January throughout a tune-up occasion for the Australian Open, he needed to pull out of the yr’s first main with a torn hip muscle, then was sidelined once more till a return on his beloved clay on the Barcelona Open in April.

Courting to late in 2022, when he was overwhelmed within the fourth spherical at Flushing Meadows by Frances Tiafoe, Nadal is simply 14-14, together with 12-7 this yr.

However his total resume is unimpeachable: a complete of 209 weeks at No. 1 within the ATP rankings and practically 18 years’ value of consecutive weeks within the Prime 10; 92 singles titles; 1,080-227 win-loss file; simply shy of $135 million in prize cash.

“Actually, every thing I’ve skilled has been a dream come true,” Nadal mentioned. “I depart with absolutely the peace of thoughts of getting given my greatest, of getting made an effort in each means.”

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Fendrich reported from Philadelphia. Related Press writers Joseph Wilson and James Ellingworth contributed to this report.

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