Rafael Nadal, one of tennis’ greatest champions and the undisputed clay-court specialist of all time, announced Thursday that he will retire from the sport at the end of the season.
In an Instagram post, Nadal said he would step down after representing Spain, host of the Davis Cup final next month.
“This is a difficult decision, a decision that will take time for me, but in this life, everything has a beginning and an end,” Nadal said in the video post. “I believe this is the right time to end a career that has been long and far 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 Olympics and gold in doubles at the 2016 Rio Olympics. The tireless Mallorcan won two Australian Open titles, two Wimbledon titles from All England Club, four US Open wins, and 14 French Open clay court championships.
Nadal’s career record includes 92 tournament wins on the men’s tour, including five wins on Canadian hard courts between 2005 and 2019.
Nadal, 38, thanked his wife Mery, extended family, coaches and treas over the years.
The veteran pointed to a difficult last two seasons, which were marred by injuries. He underwent hip surgery, missed four major tournaments in a row, and was knocked out in the first round of this year’s French Open.
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 men’s major titles, followed by Switzerland’s Nadal and Federer on 20. There is a big gap before the next highest player on the list, American Pete Sampras with 14 Grand Slam wins.
A nod to his ‘great rival’
The Nadal-Federer rivalry in particular is hailed as one of the greatest in sports history, with the players meeting 40 times, including in 24 tournament finals.
Nadal thanked “my great rival” in his retirement announcement.
“I have spent a lot of time with them and lived many moments that I will remember for the rest of my life,” he said.
Nadal and Spain will play in Malaga against the Netherlands to kick off the Davis Cup knockout stages, 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 tournament’s player of the year.
Nadal’s overall singles record in Davis Cup matches is 29-1.