Rafael Nadal retires after Spain hosts Davis Cup

MALAGA, Spain (AP) – Rafael Nadal’s impending retirement will loom over the Davis Cup Final 8 from the moment it begins Tuesday in southern Spain.

If it wasn’t already obvious, just look at the banner measuring 28,000 square feet (2,600 square meters) — about half the size of a football field — that wraps around the football stadium across the street from the arena that hosts tennis. The blue sign, visible from the highway exiting Malaga airport, is marked in large white letters that read “GRACIAS, RAFA.” Between those two words is a picture of Nadal carrying a tennis racket in his left hand while wearing one of his trademark sleeveless shirts and his all-too-regular headband.

He is shown with his back to the world, walking away, symbolizing the 38-year-old Spaniard’s farewell to the sport after a remarkable career.

“It’s going to be very exciting for everyone,” said tournament director Feliciano Lopez, a former player who faced Nadal 14 times on tour as a singles opponent and was also his Davis Cup teammate. “Very emotional, at the same time.”

That sentiment is likely to hold true for Nadal’s fans, fellow players, his family – his wife and their son have attended the practice – and, understandably, even the 22-time Grand Slam champion himself as Tuesday approaches. That’s when Spain meet the Netherlands on an indoor hard court at the Palacio de Deportes Jose Maria Martin Carpena.

“It’s amazing that this could be the last match that Nadal plays,” Dutch captain Paul Haarhuis said on Sunday, “and we hope to give him a good ‘Adios’.”

Nadal had hip surgery in June 2023 and missed almost all of that season. He dealt with a new hip problem this year and an abdominal injury, part of a long list of issues that contributed to his body feeling like what he described as “a jungle” in May after losing in the first round of the French Open. clay-court Slam he has won a record 14 times.

It was his only Grand Slam appearance all year; Nadal played a total of just 23 official singles matches over the past two seasons combined. That includes going 12-7 in 2024. His last real matches came at the Olympics in early August, when he lost in the second round of singles to Novak Djokovic and in the quarterfinals of doubles alongside Carlos Alcaraz.

Spain captain David Ferrer, the 2013 French Open runner-up to Nadal, has yet to tell the world how he will employ the Malaga star.

Could be for singles, although Nadal said he will step aside if he doesn’t think he can win. Could be in doubles with his 21-year-old heir, Alcaraz, in a renewal of their “Nadalcaraz” partnership. Could be both. If Spain gets past the Netherlands, it will face Germany or Canada in the semi-finals on Friday.

“I really want him to retire with a title,” Alcaraz said.

Thursday’s quarterfinals feature the United States against Australia, and defending champion Italy — whose roster includes No. 1-ranked Jannik Sinner – against Argentina. The winners of these matchups will meet in the semifinals on Saturday; The championship will be decided on Sunday.

When Nadal explained last month that the Davis Cup would be it for him, he spoke in happy terms about his more than two decades in the sport.

“Really, everything I’ve experienced has been a dream come true,” he said.

He becomes the second member of the so-called Big Three in men’s tennis to retire.

Roger Federer announced his retirement in 2022 – alongside Nadal in doubles at the Laver Cup, after which he wept with his long-time rival and eventually friend – while Djokovic remains near the top of the game.

Djokovic’s Serbia did not qualify for the Davis Cup quarter-finals, but he posted on social media that he would be present in Malaga. Who knows who else might show up in the sold-out crowd of 9,200 on Tuesday, not just from the world of tennis, and not just athletes from other sports, but other celebrities as well?

“I don’t know if we’re going to have seats for everybody,” Lopez said. “Everyone wants to be there for his farewell.”

There will be plenty of people tuning in from afar, including other tennis players, of course.

“I want to see it. I want to enjoy it,” said 2021 US Open champion Daniil Medvedev, who lost to Nadal in two Grand Slam finals. “It’s a big moment for the sport because he did so much for the sport.”

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AP Sports Writer Andrew Dampf in Turin, Italy, contributed to this report.

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Howard Fendrich has been the AP’s tennis writer since 2002. Find his stories here: More AP tennis: