Rafael Nadal lit the courts up in his time in the spotlight, winning 22 Grand Slam titles and being apart of the fabelled ‘Big Four’. Now retired, he has opened up to why he has retired and reminisced on previous rivalries whilst looking ahead to the next big match-up in tennis.
Nadal’s carrer spanned over two dazzzling decades, winning consistently in that period and regularly competing and beating the best. Now that is behind him, he has switched from a competitive athlete to a devoted family man, spending more time with his baby.
In an interview with The Athletic, Nadal said: “I want to spend time at home,” he said. “I postponed a lot of things to the end of the season because of the baby, and then I have to work. I have too many things in my life that for me are more important today,” he said. “I like tennis, I like other things, too, and I want to enjoy this moment of my life.“I have too many things in my life that for me are more important today. I like tennis, I like other things, too, and I want to enjoy this moment of my life.”
Stepping away from the game
His final appearance came in Malaga, representing Spain in the Davis Cup, but his final Grand Slam appearance came at the place he won 15 of his 22 major titles at: Roland Garros. “I am not a guy who is … I am a little bit too shy for all these things. Roland Garros was the right place,” he said.
When asked why he retired, he said: “First of all, because after my retirement, I was very bad in terms of pain in my foot. I had very big difficulties to walk for a month.” He was able to say goodbye to the sport with his arch-rivals: Roger Federer, Novak Djokovic and Andy Murray. They had treated each other with respect throughout their merciless careers, but the Spaniard revealed that it was ‘a very deep personal feeling’ to say goodbye to them. “Before that, I was at peace, after that, the same, but I was very happy to receive such a beautiful moment.”
