Rafael Nadals career ends as Spain is ousted

Mohamed Magdy  

31 w

Rafael Nadal's career ends as Spain is ousted

Rafael Nadal's incredible tennis career came to an end after Spain lost its Davis Cup quarterfinal against the Netherlands on Tuesday.

Nadal, 38, announced last month that this would be his final tournament, closing out a remarkable career that saw him win 22 men's Grand Slam titles. Nadal said Monday at a packed media conference that he could no longer reach the competitive level he felt was required to continue to challenge for some of the sport's biggest honors.

The hope of many was that Nadal would head into retirement having helped guide Spain to a Davis Cup triumph in front of home support in Málaga. But Spain ended up falling to the Netherlands 2-1.

"The titles and numbers are there so people probably know that, but the way I would like to be remembered is being a good person from a small village in Mallorca where I had the luck to have my uncle as a tennis coach," Nadal said Tuesday on court in a special presentation honoring his career. "I had a great family who supported me in every moment. I was a kid who followed their dreams, worked as hard as possible to be where I am today.

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