Rafael Nadal: “Everything he does in life, he does with intensity and passion,” says Feliciano López

CNN
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The tennis world is still in turmoil after Rafael Nadal announced his illustrious career will come to an end next month.

The 22-time Grand Slam champion said on social media on Thursday that his final tournament will be the Davis Cup final with Spain in November.

For Feliciano López, a former player and the event's tournament director, Nadal's retirement announcement was a “very sad day,” although he looks forward to honoring his compatriot at the competition.

Playing on home soil in Málaga, Nadal, 38, will be part of a Spanish team vying for a seventh Davis Cup title.

“Although we could have expected it because there were many signs over the last seven or eight months that Rafa was going to retire, of course it is still very sad when the moment comes and you realize that you won't see Rafa will no longer play,” López told CNN’s Amanda Davies.

“We have to do something very special to honor Rafa. I know it is very difficult because he is such a legend of the sport, so of course we are trying to plan something very special.”

Although Nadal is usually associated with dominating the ATP Tour and Grand Slam competitions – most notably the French Open, which he won with a record 14 victories – he has also had success on the international stage.

He is a four-time Davis Cup winner and has two Olympic gold medals to his name, including gold in the singles in Beijing in 2008 and the doubles title in Rio de Janeiro in 2016 together with Marc López.

“The most exciting thing for me is that his last professional tennis tournament will be in Spain and that he will represent his country, that is something he loves to do,” López said. “Every time he took part in the Davis Cup, he gave his best and tried to represent his country in the best possible way.”

Nadal and López met 14 times during their careers, with Nadal winning the duel 10-4. They also regularly took part in international competitions as teammates.

“It is impossible to find a better teammate than Rafa,” López added. “He is so passionate, he loves representing his country. Everything he does in his life he does with great intensity and passion. That’s why it’s a great privilege to have Rafa as a teammate.”

The 43-year-old told a story from Nadal's Davis Cup debut in 2004. Nadal, then a teenager, in his first appearance at the tournament, lost his first match in singles and then again in doubles, but López remembers the defeats Not doing so shook his self-confidence.

“He said, 'Feli, please win this game for me and I'll take care of the rest,'” López laughed. “That tells you his mentality and how strong he is mentally. He lost his first two Davis Cup games and still believes he will win the deciding game no matter what happens.”

Widely considered one of the greatest tennis players of all time, Nadal has done essentially everything there is to do in the sport. His 22 major titles are the second most in men's tennis history, behind only his long-time rival Novak Djokovic, as are his 36 Masters 1000 titles.

Most recently he played doubles alongside Carlos Alcaraz at the Olympic Games in Paris. He was originally supposed to play for Team Europe at the Laver Cup, but had to cancel due to fitness problems.

Nadal has received strong support from his colleagues following his retirement announcement.

“It's really difficult,” Alcaraz told reporters at the Shanghai Masters. “Really difficult news for everyone. What's even harder for me is that he's been my idol since I started playing tennis, I look up to him. Probably thanks to him, I wanted to become a professional tennis player.”

World No. 1 Jannik Sinner also paid tribute to Nadal's career, saying: “He gave us all a lot of emotions… At the same time, staying humble, not changing with success and choosing the right people around him.” and one Having a great family – there are so many great things he gave to all of us.”