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Nadal to retire from glittering tennis career next month
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38-year-old will represent Spain at Davis Cup Finals next month
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He goes down in history as greatest ever clay court player
Rafael Nadal will retire from tennis next month, the 22-time Grand Slam champion announced today, signaling the end of an era for the men's game.
The 38-year-old will represent Spain at the Davis Cup Finals, which take place in Malaga from 19 to 24 November, before bowing out.
Like Andy Murray, who retired in the summer, Nadal attributed his decision in part to injuries.
He said: "The reality is that it has been some difficult years, the last two especially... I don't think I have been able to play without limitations."
He is second to only Novak Djokovic as the most successful men's singles player of all time.
Is Alacaraz heir to Nadal on clay?
Nadal won the French Open men's singles title 14 time - a record that is unlikely to be surpassed any time soon. His first win their came in 2005 and he won it for the final time in 2022.
He is easily the greatest men's singles player in Roland Garros history. His nearest rival, in terms of titles, in the Open Era of professional tennis is Bjorn Borg who won it six times.
Nadal's compatriot Carlos Alcaraz won the tournament this year and is 6/42.50 to successfully defend his title next summer.
Nadal titles include two Wimbledon wins
Nadal wasn't all about clay and was also a great hardcourt competitor, winning the US Open champion four times and won the Australian Open twice.
He won Wimbledon twice, defeating Roger Federer in the one of the greatest ever finals at the All England club in 2008.
He also won Olympic singles and doubles gold and helped Spain to five Davis Cup titles, most recently in 2019.
Nadal's superb record at Roland Garros lead some fans to believe he could win the men's singles Gold medal at this year's Paris Olympics. He suffered a second round defeat, however, to Novak Djokovic in straight sets and some commentators believe that may have helped to seal Nadal's decision to retire at the end of 2024.
He enjoyed a brilliant career and was part of ferocious four-way rivalry, along with Djokovic, Federer and Murray - that made for some of the most thrilling contests of the modern era.
Nadal will be a big absence from men's tennis and his retirement, like that of Federer and Murray before him, marks the end of an era.