SPAIN’S tennis legend Rafael Nadal will retire from the sport next month.
The 22-time Grand Slam champion from Mallorca will finish his extraordinary career at the Davis Cup finals in Malaga between November 19 and 24.
Nadal, 38, has been battling injuries for the past few years on tour and made it clear last year that this would be his last season.
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He appeared at just two grand slams since the start of 2023 – the Australian Open of that year, and this year’s French Open, where he lost to Alexander Zverev in the opening round.
His final grand slam title was the 2022 French Open, where he extended his record with a 14th Roland Garros crown.
More recently, he partnered up with fellow Spaniard, Carlos Alcaraz, to play doubles at the Paris Olympics in the summer.
“I am here to let you know I am retiring from professional tennis,” Nadal said in a video message released on social media.
“The reality is that it has been some difficult years, the last two especially.”
“I don’t think I have been able to play without limitations.”
“It is obviously a difficult decision, one that has taken me some time to make, but in this life, everything has a beginning and an end, and I think it’s the appropriate time to put an end to a career that has been long and much more successful than I could have ever imagined.”
A 92-time tour-level champion who spent 209 weeks at number one in the ATP Rankings, the Mallorcan from Manacor became a professional player in 2001.
