Rafael Nadal, one of tennis’s greatest champions and the unquestioned clay court specialist of all time, announced Thursday he will retire from the sport at season’s end.
In an Instagram post, Nadal said he will bow out after representing Spain, the host of next month’s Davis Cup finals.
“It is a tough decision, one that has taken me time to make, but in this life, everything has a beginning and an end,” Nadal said in the video post. “I believe it is the right time to put an end to a career that has been long and much more successful than I could have ever imagined.”
Nadal won 22 Grand Slam titles between 2005 and 2022, as well as an Olympic gold medal in singles at the 2008 Beijing Games and gold in doubles at the 2016 Rio Olympics. The indefatigable player from Mallorca with the formidable forehand won two Australian Open titles, two Wimbledon titles from the all-England Club, four U.S. Open wins and a whopping 14 championships on the clay courts of the French Open.
Nadal’s dominance in Paris is celebrated by a statue of him that stands near the main entrance to the grounds of Roland Garros and in the shadow of its main stadium, Court Philippe Chatrier.
Nadal’s career ledger includes 92 tournament wins on the men’s tour, including five on Canadian hard courts between 2005 and 2019.
Nadal, 38, thanked his wife Mery, extended family, coaches and tream throughout the years.
The veteran player referenced a difficult past two seasons, which have been marred by injury. He underwent hip surgery, missed four consecutive major tournaments, and was eliminated in the first round at the French Open this year.
Nadal expressed frustration with the questions about his future after that loss.
“Every day I come here to answer whether it’s my last game or not,” he told reporters. “I can’t spend every day analyzing whether it could be my last game or not. What can I say? It’s not easy to play in this situation.”
Spaniard Rafael Nadal defeated Norwegian Casper Ruud 6-3, 6-3, 6-0 in Paris to win his record-extending 22nd Grand Slam title.
With Nadal’s retirement, only Novak Djokovic will remain from the sport’s so-called Big 4 on the men’s circuit. Nadal, Djokovic, Roger Federer and Andy Murray accounted for all but two of the 40 Grand Slam championships played between 2004 and 2013.
Djokovic has won a record 24 majors on the men’s side, followed by Nadal and Switzerland’s Federer with 20. There is a yawning gap before the next highest on the list, American Pete Sampras with 14 Grand Slam wins.
Nod to his ‘great rivals’
The Nadal-Federer rivalry in particular has been hailed as one of the greatest in sport’s history, with the players meeting 40 times, including in 24 tournament finals.
Nadal thanked “my great rivals” in his retirement announcement.
“I have spent many hours with them and lived many moments that I will remember for the rest of my life,” he said.
Nadal came from a sporting family, and took up tennis under the tutelage of his uncle, Toni Nadal.
“There was no let-up from Toni. No mercy,” Nadal wrote in the 2011 autobiography Rafa, written with John Carlin. “I look back at the teenage Rafael and I am proud of him. He set a benchmark of endurance that served me as an example and as a reminder … if you want something badly enough, no sacrifice is too great.”
While Nadal’s career was filled with uncommon accolades and glory, he wrote in the same book that he contemplated pursuing a career in professional golf after a 2005 foot injury.
Nadal made his first pro tennis tour appearance at 15. He struggled to communicate in English, working just as hard off the court to eventually learn the language.
Spain will take to the courts in Malaga on Nov. 19 against Netherlands to begin the Davis Cup knockout stage, with Canada meeting Germany. Nadal has been part of four Davis Cup title wins for Spain, including in 2019 when they beat Canada in the final and he was named the top player of the tournament.
Nadal’s overall singles record in Davis Cup play is 29-1.
