Lounge
Rafael Nadal retires: The end of a career that redefined clay court tennis
Summary
In a career spanning over two decades, Spain's Rafael Nadal, who retired earlier this week, seemed to play without limitationsIt was an end that was visible for some time, except for the man who was just not used to giving up.
Rafael Nadal announced his retirement from professional tennis on Thursday, after two years of unsuccessful comeback attempts, over a video message posted on his social handles. “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," he said.
Also read: Rohit Brijnath on Rafael Nadal: The man who taught us to love clay
In a career spanning over two decades, Nadal did play without limitations, collecting trophies and fans through this journey of 22 Grand Slam singles titles. His tally of majors is second only to Novak Djokovic among men, and includes an astonishing 14 French Opens. “…I think it’s the appropriate time to put an end to a career that has been long and much more stressful than I could have ever imagined," Nadal added.
The 38-year-old tried desperately to return to the sport after yet another injury in 2022. Given his track record of bouncing back, it was a distinct possibility, but poor results in the last two seasons probably prompted his decision. His last tournament will now be the Davis Cup team event, in which Spain plays the Netherlands in the quarterfinals in November. The last three stages of that tournament will be played at Malaga, Spain, just 200km south of Sevilla, where Nadal found his “first great joys as a player" in the Davis Cup final of 2004. Spain took a punt in that tie and pitted an 18-year-old Nadal against the then world number two, American Andy Roddick, signalling his emergence on the world stage.
Earlier that year, Nadal had played at the Tata Open in Chennai in January, losing quietly in the first round and without showing signs of what he would become. His first French Open title came on debut the following year, in 2005, and over the course of the next two decades, he became synonymous with clay, with Roland Garros, with scrappy battles and baseline slugfests, taking forever to serve and forever to give up. He adapted his baseline game built on clay to all surfaces, won twice at Wimbledon, but also remained virtually unbeatable at Roland Garros where he has a 112-4 win-loss record.
Nadal won 92 singles titles on the ATP (Association of Tennis Professionals) Tour, an Olympic singles gold in Beijing 2008, spent 209 weeks at the number one rank, while coinciding with the greatest generation of male players ever. Through it all he remained a role model sportsman, a fierce competitor, and a popular icon.
His great rival Roger Federer retired in 2022, whose farewell in London will be remembered as much for the Swiss player’s swansong as it would be for the copious amounts of tears shed by many players, including by Rafa. Andy Murray, who briefly converted the Big Three into the Big Four, retired after this year’s Paris Olympics while Djokovic keeps going, showing signs of mounting fragility as Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner make it increasingly difficult for the Serbian to grow his tally.
Nadal was part of some of the greatest matches in tennis history, including the 2008 Wimbledon and 2009 Australian Open finals, both of which he won over Federer; the 2012 Australian Open final that he lost to Djokovic and the 2022 Australian Open final against Daniil Medvedev, which he won from two sets down.
There would have been more titles, definitely, had Nadal’s body not betrayed him so often. His bruising, unrelenting style of play, with heavy forehands, tenacious ball recovery even had experts, in the beginning of his career, predicting a short career. He missed 11 Grand Slams in his playing career due to injuries, including Wimbledon and US Open in 2021. Like on occasions earlier, it seemed that his career would end there; but Nadal came roaring back in 2022, winning the Australian and French Opens before pulling out of the Wimbledon semi-final with a hip injury. He played only a couple of tournaments in 2023, a few this year.
Unfittingly, his last match at Roland Garros in May ended in a first-round defeat to Alexander Zverev and his last match prior to the announcement ended in a straight set loss to Djokovic in the Paris Olympics. Fittingly and in most likelihood, the 2022 French Open would be his last singles title. “I leave with absolute peace of mind of having given my best, of having made an effort in every way," he said in his statement.
A not-so-recent Nike advertisement makes the social media rounds frequently, of Rafa through the course of his career—from a long-haired, swashbuckling, will-return-all, power player with rippling biceps to a slightly more mature, will-return-all, power player. John McEnroe’s distinctive voice says at the beginning of it, “Here is 16-year-old Rafael Nadal, waiting for his first serve," and ends with the same visual. “This guy is relentless. Is he going to play every point like that?" McEnroe exclaims.
Rafael Nadal played every point like that. Till the very end.
