'Titles Are There...' Rafael Nadal's Emotional Words After Retirement Will Move You to Tears

The day tennis fans were dreading for some time finally arrived. Rafael Nadal, a legend on the court, played his last competitive match. Over a month back he had announced that the Davis Cup would be his final hurrah. The 38-year-old lost his singles match as Netherlands beat Spain 2-1 in the quarters. That was it, it was over. An inauspicious end to a great career.

Nadal finishes his career with 22 Grand Slams, second only to Novak Djokovic who has 24. He won the French Open a record 14 times and is also an Olympic gold medallist. In a career that began in 2001 at professional level, Nadal maintained a winning rate of nearly 83%. That is just amazing.

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But what really moved fans and is sure to bring a tear to the eye of those who loved to watch him play are his emotional words after his last match. He hoped to be remembered as a good person first and wanted to leave a legacy behind in the sport.

"I leave with the peace of mind that I have left a legacy, which I really feel is not just a sporting one but a personal one. understand that the love I have received, if it was just for what happened on the court, would not be the same," he said as per AFP.

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"The titles, the numbers are there, so people probably know that, but the way that I would like to be remembered more is like a good person, from a small village in Mallorca," he added.

"I had the luck that I had my uncle that was a tennis coach in my village when I was a very, very small kid, and a great family that supports me in every moment. I just want to be remembered as a good person, a kid that followed their dreams and achieved (even) more than what I had dreamed," he went on to say.

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I leave the world of professional tennis having encountered many good friends along the way. I am calm because I have received an education to take on what is coming next. I have a great family around me who help me with everything that I need every day," he continued.

After Roger Federer’s retirement in 2022, tennis is poorer after another gem leaves the court. Only Novak Djokovic is left from the big three and at 37, it is not long before he too calls it a day. The game is moving forward but Nadal’s place as a legend, especially on clay, is sealed.