Rafael Nadal has officially entered retirement after Spain were dumped out of the Davis Cup Finals.
The former world No. 1 suffered defeat to Botic van de Zandschulp in likely his last-ever match before Carlos Alcaraz won the second singles match to take their tie to a decisive doubles rubber.
But Alcaraz and Marcel Granollers lost to Van de Zandschulp and Wesley Koolhof, who is also retiring this week.
The Dutch team broke Spanish hearts as they won their quarter-final tie, with Van de Zandschulp and Koolhof edging out the home team 7-6(4) 7-6(3) in a nail-biting, two-hour and 14-minute match.
While Koolhof’s career lives to see another day, Nadal has officially hung up his racket. Last month, the 38-year-old confirmed the Davis Cup Finals would be his last-ever tournament.
He repeatedly stated that he wouldn’t take to the court unless he felt ready. But the final decision came down to Spanish captain David Ferrer, who picked the 22-time Grand Slam champion for the first singles rubber.
Nadal showed flashes of his vintage best but he ultimately lost 6-4 6-4, giving the Netherlands the edge.
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