Remembering Rafael Nadal’s excellent career after announcing his retirement

Rafael Nadal’s upcoming retirement from professional tennis means that fans around the world will remember his countless matches and memorable moments.

The 38-year-old had already committed to playing in the Davis Cup. But Nadal has now confirmed that the team event in November will be his last appearance before retiring from tennis.

When Nadal started playing tennis at the Manacor Tennis Club as a child, no one could have predicted that he would become one of the three greatest tennis players of all time, winning over millions of fans around the world.

From Grand Slam titles to epic rivalries against Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic to breaking records, Nadal has established himself as one of the most legendary sporting figures of all time over more than 20 years in professional tennis.

Rafael Nadal’s first years on the ATP Tour

Nadal made his ATP Tour debut at his home tournament in Mallorca at 15 and 10 months. He became the ninth man in the open era to win a match before turning 16, after defeating world number 81 Ramon Delgado.

The Spaniard’s rise began in 2003. He defeated fourth-seeded and former French Open champion Carlos Moya at the ATP Masters 1000 event in Hamburg. Ironically, Moya would be part of Nadal’s team for many years.

After reaching his first ATP final at the Auckland Open, Nadal won his first clay court title at the Orange Prokom Open in August 2004, comfortably overcoming José Acasuso in straight sets.

This was followed by being part of the victorious Spanish Davis Cup team a few months later. The then 18-year-old defeated world number 2 Andy Roddick to seal the title on home soil.

Nadal begins dominance and rivalry at French Open with Roger Federer

Nadal became a global star in 2005. He played his first significant final against Roger Federer at the Miami Open, losing an epic final in five sets, setting the stage for their incredible rivalry.

After winning his first Masters-1000 titles in Monte-Carlo and Rome, Nadal secured his first Grand Slam title at the 2005 French Open. He defeated Federer in the semi-final before defeating Mariano Puerta in the final.

That Roland-Garros triumph began his extraordinary French Open record. Despite his brilliance and undisputed skill on clay, Federer was unable to beat Nadal in Paris.

Nadal retained his French Open titles in 2006, 2007 and 2008. He beat Federer in all of those finals, including one of the best performances of his career when he defeated the Swiss maestro 6-1, 6-3, 6-0. in 2008.

However, Nadal found a more challenging opponent in Federer at Wimbledon. Federer proved too good for his younger opponent in the 2006 and 2007 finals at SW19, his first non-French Open final.

Epic 2008 Wimbledon Final Begins to Succeed Outside the French Open

Some consider Nadal and Federer’s 2008 Wimbledon final to be the greatest tennis match ever played. After taking a 6-4 6-4 lead, Federer emerged a changed player after a rain delay and won the next two sets in the tiebreak.

The final set contained excellent shots from both men, but Nadal managed to keep his cool superbly to win 6-4, 6-4, 6-7, 6-7, 9-7. This match is still discussed many years later.

Nadal’s success at Wimbledon confirmed that he could win the biggest tournaments outside of clay. A few months later, he secured his first hard-court Grand Slam at the 2009 Australian Open, winning another dramatic five-set final against Federer.

After injuries and a surprising French Open fourth-round loss to Robin Soderling, Nadal ended a period of more than a year without a major title by winning the 2010 French Open, gaining revenge on Soderling in the final.

The Spaniard won his second and final Wimbledon title a few weeks later, defeating Tomas Berdych in the Czech’s only Grand Slam final in straight sets, with an impressive performance at SW19.

The start of Nadal and Novak Djokovic’s epic Grand Slam matches

Many thought that the rivalry between Nadal and Federer would dominate tennis, but the emergence of Novak Djokovic prevented that from happening. Some think the Serb’s rivalry with Nadal has surpassed Federer’s with him.

His first two major finals were at the US Open. Nadal won the first in four sets before Djokovic got revenge in the second in the same number of sets to claim the third Grand Slam title of his dominant 2011.

The pair’s most memorable match was the 2012 Australian Open final, another contender for the greatest tennis match ever played. That contest lasted a jaw-dropping five hours and 53 minutes, making it the longest Grand Slam final of all time.

After a final of almost unbelievable quality, Djokovic won 5-7, 6-4, 6-2, 6-7, 7-5, ripping off his shirt in celebration. The two men were barely able to stand at the ceremony afterwards.

Nadal responded by enjoying a period of dominance in the majors against Djokovic. After beating his rival in four sets in the 2012 French Open final, the Spaniard defeated Djokovic again in another incredible five-set battle in the Roland-Garros semi-final the following year.

The 38-year-old also won the 2013 US Open and 2014 French Open finals against Djokovic. Surprisingly, after that US Open triumph, Nadal would never win another hard court set against Djokovic.

Struggles and resurgence during the 2017 season

After missing the final stages of the 2014 season due to an appendix injury, Nadal was not the same player in the following two years. He failed to reach the Grand Slam semi-final in 2015 or 2016 and was a shadow of his former self.

That period included Djokovic defeating Nadal at the French Open for the first time in 2015. At age 30 and struggling at the end of the 2016 season, many felt his time at the top of tennis was over.

These predictions proved to be inaccurate. Nadal reached his first Grand Slam final in nearly three years and first against Federer in nearly six years at the 2017 Australian Open. Federer triumphed in five sets in what turned out to be his last major final.

Afterwards, a rejuvenated Nadal enjoyed an excellent 2017 season. The tennis legend secured an unprecedented tenth French Open title by defeating Stan Wawrinka in the final, before going on to claim a third US Open title a few months later. after.

After defeating Dominic Thiem, who is also retiring this year, in the 2018 French Open final, Nadal came close to a first Wimbledon final since 2011. He lost his last five-set battle against Djokovic 4-6, 6 -3, 6- 7, 6-3, 8-10.

Nadal’s last Grand Slam final against Djokovic was more successful. He dismantled his great rival 6-0, 6-2, 7-5 to win his 13th French Open title. He also won his fourth and final US Open title in 2019.

Winning the 11th Monte-Carlo Masters and the 10th Italian Open were other achievements Nadal achieved before the end of 2021. However, he missed several months of the 2021 season due to injury and failed to win a major title that year. .

Final Success Spell, Injury Problems and Retirement

Expectations were not high for Nadal ahead of the 2022 Australian Open. It was his first tournament back after more than six months away, and few thought he could seriously challenge a Grand Slam he hadn’t won in 13 years.

Even so, Nadal frustrated expectations and sealed what many consider the most impressive title of his career. He recovered from two sets behind against Daniil Medvedev in the final, winning 2-6, 6-7, 6-4, 6-4, 7-5.

Nadal’s last Grand Slam success appropriately came at the French Open a few months later. The Spaniard sealed a 14th Roland-Garros title against Casper Ruud, defeating Djokovic in his final Grand Slam quarter-final match.

The final two years of the 22-time Grand Slam champion’s career were much more challenging. He suffered an injury in the 2022 Wimbledon quarterfinals against Taylor Fritz, beginning a cycle of repeated fitness problems.

Nadal was out for 12 months after suffering a serious hip injury at the 2023 Australian Open. A return attempt was made in early 2024 before being ruled out for a further few months.

The 38-year-old was at least able to play in the French Open for the last time. His level against eventual runner-up Alexander Zverev was high considering what he had been through in the previous 18 months, but he still lost in straight sets.

Nadal also competed in the Olympics, held at Roland-Garros. He renewed his rivalry against Djokovic one final time in the second round of singles, but was defeated 6-1, 6-4.

Carlos Alcaraz fulfilled his dream of playing doubles with Nadal at the Olympics. They reached the quarter-finals together before being eliminated by experienced duo Rajeev Ram and Austin Krajicek.

Nadal will likely play doubles at least once more with Alcaraz in November’s Davis Cup finals in Malaga, where his extraordinary career will come to an end.