Rafael Nadal, Maribel Nadal, Iga Swiatek (Images via X, Instagram)
Iga Swiatek couldn’t believe that Rafael Nadal finally bade his farewell to tennis. Nadal, on 19th November, hung up his racket following Spain’s defeat in the Davis Cup quarterfinals to the Netherlands, which was played at Jose Maria Martin Carpena Arena in Malaga.
Spain lost the first match as Nadal couldn’t overcome Botic van de Zandschulp. But Carlos Alcaraz, one of the best players in the world, kept Spain’s hopes alive when he went past Tallon Griekspoor.
Alcaraz and his doubles partner Marcel Granollers then toiled hard to eke out a win over Wesley Koolhof and Van de Zandschulp but the latter’s 7-6 (4) 7-6 (3) win meant Spain’s elimination and Nadal’s retirement.
Wishes from all corners poured in and social media was filled with heartfelt messages. Swiatek, who has always looked up to Nadal shared a few pictures on her Instagram with the caption, “I just can’t” with a crying emoticon.
Nadal’s sister Maribel Nadal responded to the message with three heart emoticons while Nadal, on November 22, dropped “Thank you Iga” on Swiatek’s comment section.
Check out Swiatek’s Instagram post:
Toni Nadal explains why Rafael Nadal took so long to retire
Rafael Nadal barely played since 2023 as he remained on the sidelines while battling injuries. His last Grand Slam trophy was his 14th French Open in 2022. Injuries never been a stranger to Nadal, as he kept fighting with them throughout his career but at 38, he just had to stop.
When Nadal missed almost the entire 2023, retirement seemed inevitable but he kept pushing and came back to court in the 2024 Barcelona Open. And when he finally announced retirement, it was shocking at first but the tennis community probably had anticipated hearing it this year. Nadal’s uncle and his ex-coach Toni Nadal explained why Nadal waited too long to announce his retirement.
It’s true that many people said he waited too long. It’s because he got used to pushing until the very end in everything, in his matches, in his recoveries…and he trusted that his body would hold up. This time it didn’t work out, so he did what needed to be done. I don’t see anyone doing something they love retiring so early.
Toni Nadal said on El Larguerto on SER radio
Toni didn’t attend Nadal’s farewell ceremony as he had work commitments and watched it on TV. In that aforementioned interview, he revealed he didn’t like the farewell ceremony and would have preferred something different that was more about his nephew’s career.
