Final serve for the King of Clay: How Rafael Nadal, 38, picked up a tennis racquet aged three before going on to become 22-time Grand Slam winner - but injury mired stars final difficult years as he announces retirement
Tennis legend Rafael Nadal has announced an emotional farewell to the sport as he retires at the age of 38 as a 22-time Grand Slam champion - describing his career as a dream come true.
Tennis legend Rafael Nadal has announced an emotional farewell to the sport as he retires at the age of 38 as a 22-time Grand Slam champion - describing his career as a dream come true.
Yet since first taking up the game as a three-year-old he would often burst into tears of pain and frustration during tough coaching sessions led by his uncle Toni Nadal.
Rafael initially preferred football to tennis and wanted to follow in the footsteps of another uncle Miguel Angel Nadal, who played for Barcelona and Spain - including missing a penalty against England in the quarter-finals of Euro 96.
Yet Toni insisted he make the most of his tennis talents and was among the family members thanked in the five-minute video message released by the tennis star today announcing his retirement.
The decision comes after difficult recent years in which Nadal has been plagued by persistent injury problems and will see him bow out after leading Spains Davis Cup finals campaign in Malaga next month.
Rafael Nadal, pictured playing tennis as a child, first picked up a racquet at the age of three
Tennis legend Rafael Nadal today released a video message to fans in which he revealed he was retiring from the sport at the age of 38
Nadal, pictured after beating Swedens Robin Soderling in the first round of the French Open in May 2006, ends his career with 22 Grand Slam mens singles titles
No one has won the mens singles title at the French Open as many times as Rafael Nadal, a 14-time champion at Roland Garros including when winning in June 2005 (pictured)
Nadals father Sebastian is a businessman with firms including an insurance company and a restaurant while his mother Ana María Parera owned a perfume shop before quitting to concentrate on raising him and sister Maribel, who is two years his junior.
It was from his mother that Nadal would often receive support when struggling as a child with his intensive tennis coaching sessions.
But Toni has remained a constant throughout a career which exploded when 19-year-old Nadal won the French Open in 2005 - the first of his 14 titles at Roland Garros.
In todays message, Nadal said of Toni: ‘My uncle, who is the reason I started playing tennis – I believe that, thanks to him, I have also been able to overcome many situations that have been difficult in my sporting career.
Nadal, born in June 1986 in the town of Manacor on the island of Mallorca, grew up to become one of the finest and most successful tennis players of all time.
Yet he preferred playing football in the streets with friends before being tempted to join a group being coached by his uncle Toni in Manacor.
In his 2011 autobiography Rafa: My Story, Nadal recalled: One day I joined in with a group of half a dozen children Toni was teaching. I was already crazy about football, playing on the streets with my friends every spare moment my parents let me .
I liked being part of a team and Toni says that at first I found tennis boring. But learning in a group helped, and it’s what made possible everything that followed.
A young Rafael Nadal is pictured here in 1994 with his footballer uncle Miguel Angel Nadal, who played for Barcelona and Spain
Only Novak Djokovic, with 24 Grand Slam mens singles titles, has more than Nadal - seen here playing Croatias Mario Ancic at Wimbledon in June 2003
Nadal, pictured at a press conference during the Gerry Weber Open in Halle in Germany in June 2005, has today described his career as a dream come true
His uncle Toni Nadal started coaching Nadal as a child and has remained a constant presence as part of his team - the pair are seen here at Wimbledon in July 2008
Nadal, who has won the French Open 14 times, is seen here after losing in the second round to eventual finalist Alexander Zverev in the second round of this years tournament in May
If it had just been me and my uncle, it would have been too suffocating. It wasn’t until I was 13, when I knew my future was in tennis, that he began training me on my own.
He told how Toni was tough on me right from the start, tougher than on the other children, adding: He demanded a lot of me, pressured me hard. He’d use rough language, shout a lot, he’d frighten me - especially when the other boys didn’t turn up and it was just the two of us.
If I saw I’d be alone with him when I arrived for training, I’d get a sinking feeling in my stomach.
It was always me, too, who he got to pick up the balls, or more balls than the others, at the end of the training session; and it was me who had to sweep the courts when we were done for the day. Anyone who might have expected any favouritism was mistaken.
My mother remembers that, as a small child, sometimes I’d come home from training crying. She’d try to get me to tell her what the matter was, but I preferred to keep quiet.
Once I confessed to her that Toni had a habit of calling me a "mummy’s boy", which pained her, but I begged her not to say anything to Toni, because that would only have made matters worse.
Why didn’t I rebel? Because I enjoyed tennis, and enjoyed it all the more once I started winning, and because I was an obedient and docile child. My mother says I was too easy to manipulate.
Maybe, but if I hadn’t loved playing the game, I wouldn’t have put up with my uncle. And I loved him too, as I still do and always will. I trusted him, and so I knew deep down that he was doing what he thought was best for me.
Four greats of the game are seeen here in September 2022 - left to right: Andy Murray, Novak Djokovic, Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal
Nadals titles included winning the mens singles at Wimbledon in 2008 and 2010
He had a classic rivalry - as well as off-court friendship - with Swiss tennis star Roger Federer - the pair are seen here at the 2005 French Open where Nadal won their semi-final
Rafael Nadal has also won two Olympics gold medals including in the mens singles at Beijing 2008 where he defeated Chiles Fernando Gonzales in the final
Nadal has become known as the King of Clay for his mastery of the surface and dominance at the French Open - he is seen here celebrating his victory in June 2022
His uncle also encouraged him to play left-handed despite being naturally right-handed, insisting he begin by doing so for 20 minutes each day.
His great potential soon became evident, including when he won an under-12 regional tennis tournament aged just eight.
He was still tempted to pursue a football career instead, until his father told him he must opt for one sport or the other.
Nadal later said: I chose tennis. Football had to stop straight away.
Nadals career would dovetail with those of three other greats - Roger Federer, Novak Djokovic and Andy Murray, providing classic rivalries and exhilirating encounters.
Among the most renowned is the 2008 Wimbledon final which lasted a then-record four hours and 48 minutes and finally saw Nadal win the deciding fifth set against Swiss opponent Federer 9-7.
He followed that up with a second Wimbledon title two years later, while other triumphs include singles gold at the 2008 Olympics in Beijing and a doubles gold at the Games in Rio eight years later.
His dominance at the French Open helped earn him the nickname, King of Clay, for his expertise on that surface - lifting the trophy nine times in his first ten attempts.
Nadal, pictured celebrating his Australian Open second round victory over Russias Mikhail Youzhny in January 2005, has more recently been plagued by injuries
He is seen here posing with his uncle and coach Toni Nadal after beating Switzerlands Stan Wawrinka in the French Open mens singles final in June 2017
Nadal wrote in his 2011 autobiography about how he was often reduced to tears by the tough coaching sessions he was put through as a child by his uncle Toni Nadal, seen here watching him play against Canadas Feliz Auger-Aliassime at the 2022 French Open
Nadal, pictured at a press conference at the Mutua Madrid Open in May 2022, said in his retirement announcement today that the past few years had been difficult
He has also won the US Open four times and the Australian Open twice.
That first French Open success in 2005 came in the same year he and future wife Maria began dating, when he was 19 and she was 17, after being introduced through her sister.
The couple married at La Fortaleza castle Mallorca in October 2019 and had a son, also named Rafael, in October 2022.
Mery used to work as a sports marketer but now helps run Nadals charity foundation, which has helped him win a reputation as one of sports most generous philanthropists.
He launched the nonprofit Fundación Rafa Nadal in November 2007, the month before he and Spain goalkeeper Iker Casillas staged a charity sports event in Madrid.
That raised more than £100,000 to help the Red Cross buy anti-malaria vaccines.
He also set up a tennis academy for underprivileged children at Anantapur Sports Village in the Indian state of Andrha Pradesh.
His charitable foundation has his mother as chair and his father as vice-chair.
Nadal started dating Maria Francisca Perello in 2005 and they married in October 2019 - she is seen here watching him play at the US Open in August 2019
The couple are pictured kissing after he defeated Frances Gael Monfils at the Monte Carlo ATP Masters Series tournament in France in April 2016
Maria and Rafael Nadal, who have a son, are seen at a gala in Amsterdam in February 2016
Nadals first Wimbledon title came after an epic final against Switzerlands Roger Federer in July 2008, a match which lasted almost five hours
Nadal made much of his relatives importance to him in todays video statement, saying: My family is everything to me.
My mother, I think she has made all the sacrifices she had to make so that we would always have everything.
My wife Mery, we’ve been together for 19 years – thank you for everything you have done. I think you’ve been the perfect travel companion during all the years of my career.
To come home and see how my son is growing every day has been a force that has really kept me alive and with the necessary energy to continue.
My sister, I think we have always had an incredible relationship.
And to my father, who I believe has been a source of information for me in every sense of the word.
I think he has been an example of effort, of overcoming – many, many thanks to my father in a very, very special way.
Nadal previously told of how devastated he was when his mother and father split in 2009, saying: My parents divorce made an important change in my life.
Rafael Nadals wife Maria is seen with their son Rafael, who was born in October 2022, at the Paris Olympics in July this year
Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal shed tears at the Swiss players final Laver Cup tennis match in London in September 2022
The pairs rivalry produced classic encounters including Nadals victory in the 2008 Wimbledon final (pictured) but they are also friends off the court
Rafael Nadals wife Maria, pictured with him at a gala for the Rafael Nadal Foundation in May 2015, works for the charitable organisation as do other members of his family
It affected me. After that, I couldnt play Wimbledon, it was tough. For one month I was outside the world.
He came back to add plenty more titles and is the only man to have won multiple Grand Slams in three different decades.
Yet his relentless energy levels and strenuous athleticism on court has often caused injury concerns, especially in the last years of his career.
These have included persistent knee injuries as well as struggles with a rare chronic disorder of his left ankle, Mueller-Weiss syndrome, which was diagnosed when Nadal was 19 but which he only revealed publicly in 2021.
He also suffered hip problems last year and has been increasingly absent from major tournaments.
The 38-year-old has not played since the Paris Olympics this summer, where he reached the quarter-finals of the mens doubles alongside Carlos Alcaraz.
Nadal subsequently withdrew from the US Open and then also last months Laver Cup in Berlin.
He began todays statement by telling viewers: ‘Hello everyone, I’m here to tell you that I am retiring from professional tennis. The reality is that it has been some difficult years, these last two especially. I don’t think I have been able to play with out limitations.
Rafael Nadal won his second Wimbledon mens singles title in July 2010 (pictured)
Rafael Nadal, who today announced his retirement, is seen here taking on the USAs Robert Kendrick at the Wimbledon tournament in June 2006
He is seen waving to the crowd after losing a Wimbledon semi-final to Serbias Novak Djokovic in July 2018
Nadals last major tournament before announcing his retirement today was at the Paris Olympics this summer (pictured) where he took part in the mens doubles with Carlos Alcaraz
It is obviously a difficult decision, one that has taken me a long time to make. But in this life everything has a beginning and an end.
And I think this is the appropriate time to put an end to a career that has been long and much more successful than I could ever have imagined.
But I am very exited that my last tournament will be the finals of the Davis Cup an representing my country. I’ve come full circle because one of my first great joys as a tennis player was the Davis Cup final in Seville in 2004.
The official X account for Roland Garros - where he established himself as a living legend - posted a short, succinct message, King, followed by an orange love heart.
Wimbledon likewise paid homage, with a post saying: Forever a champion.
The finals of the upcoming Davis Cup in the Spanish city of Malaga look set to be Nadals final foray onto the court as a professional tennis player.
The event will run from November 19 to 24, with Spain - looking to win the event for the first time since 2019 - set to face the Netherlands in the quarter-finals having progressed through the group stage.
Defending champions Italy, led by world number one Jannik Sinner, take on Argentina, while the United States face Australia and Germany will meet Canada.
Nadal is seen hitting a forehand during his second round match against Russias Mikhail Youzhny at the Australian Open in January 2005
Rafael Nadal (left) is seen congratulating Novak Djokovic after the Serbian beat him in the second round of the mens singles tournament at this summers Olympics in Paris
Nadal also took part in the mens doubles in Paris, alongside compatriot Carlos Alcaraz
Nadal waved farewell to his cherished Roland Garros Stadium in Paris after he and Alcaraz lost their Olympics semi-final to the USAs Austin Krajicek and Rajeev Ram in July this year
Nadal has previously helped Spain to four Davis Cup title triumphs and said in todays message that he felt he was coming full circle after first winning the tournament as an 18-year-old in 2004, also on home territory, in Seville.
He ended his retirement message with one more expression of gratitude, saying: And finally, you, the fans – I can’t thank you enough for what you have made me feel.
You have given me the energy I have needed at every moment. Really, everything I have experienced has been a dream come true.
I leave with the absolute peace of mind of having given my best, of having made an effort in every way. I can only end by saying a thousand thanks to all and see you soon.
