Rafael Nadal, one of the greatest tennis players of all time, announced his retirement Thursday at age 38, bringing to a close the most dominant clay-court career in the history of the sport.
Nadal’s 22 Grand Slams put him second on the all-time men’s list behind Novak Djokovic. Known for his mastery of clay and his on-court rivalry with Roger Federer, Nadal said he would play his final match in November’s Davis Cup.
“It’s obviously a difficult decision, one that has taken me some time to make,” he said in a video on X. “In this life, everything has a beginning and an end. And I think it’s an appropriate time to put an end to a career that has been long and much more successful than I ever could have imagined.”
The latter part of Nadal’s career has been plagued by injuries, one of the reasons for his retirement, he said.
“It has been some difficult years, these last two especially,” hesaid over footage of him receiving physiotherapy. “I don’t think I’ve been able to play without limitations.”
Born on the Spanish vacation island of Mallorca, Nadal won two grand slams each at Wimbledon and the Australian Open. But his generational career was built on his sheer dominance of the French Open, where he won 14 titles in 17 years from 2005 to 2022.
He has won almost $135 million in prize money, according to the Association of Tennis Professionals, tennis’ governing body.
His record at Roland-Garros is an astonishing 112 wins and four loses. And he become so synonymous with the tournament that in 2021 a statue was unveiled there depicting his trademark left forehand. Despite being the sport's premier left-handed player, Nadal is actually right-handed for other tasks, such as writing.
“I’m a little bit strange in all of that,” he said in 2020. “I eat and play basketball with the right; I play tennis and football with the left.”
His bond with the French capital was capped at the Paris Olympics this summer when he was one of the torchbearers who carried the flame up the Seine River at the opening ceremony.
Although he competed at those Games, losing to Djokovic in the second round, he then withdrew from the U.S. Open and the Laver Cup, saying for the latter, team-based tournament that "at this moment there are other players who can help the team deliver the win." That stirred rumors that retirement might be imminent.
Nadal’s most recent two Slams — at the 2022 French and Australian opens — pushed him ahead of Federer for the then-record of 20 Grand Slam men’s titles.
The pair spent years locked in an elite but seemingly good-natured rivalry, its zenith coming at the marathon 2008 Wimbledon final, widely considered to be one of the best matches of all time. The contest was a rematch of the thrilling final a year earlier. It pitted Federer, then the world No. 1 and arguable the GOAT on grass, against an upstart Nadal, who, at 22, was already established as a wunderkind on clay.
The London crowd was treated to five sets over almost five hours, finishing at 9 p.m. in near darkness in the longest Wimbledon final on record at the time. Nadal took the first two sets and was then pegged back 2-2 before he won the final, epic set 9-7.
"This is the greatest match I've ever seen," former star John McEnroe said, his own 1982 showdown against Jimmy Connors having previously held the record as the longest Wimbledon final (since overtaken again by Federer and Djokovic in 2019).
Federer announced his retirement when he was 41 at the end of the 2022 season. Both he and Nadal have since been surpassed in Grand Slams by Djokovic, currently on 24, putting Djokovic in the “greatest ever” frame despite his being more divisive among fans.
Nadal’s final act will come on home soil in Malaga, Spain, where he will line up in the Davis Cup team alongside his ascendant compatriot Carlos Alcaraz, the world No. 2.
“I am very excited that my last tournament will be the final of the Davis Cup representing my country,” he said in his video. “I’ve come full circle, since one of my first great joys as a professional tennis player was the Davis Cup final in Sevilla in 2004.”
Nadal also paid tribute to his wife of 19 years, Maria Perello, 36, and son, Rafael Nadal Jr., 2, whom he described as “a force that has really kept me alive.”
Finally, he thanked his fans. “I can’t thank you enough for what you made me feel,” he said. “You have given me the energy I have needed at every moment.”
“Really, everything I have experienced has been a dream come true.”
