<body><div><img src="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?type=thumbnail_580x000&amp;url=1SPwzo_0w1ZFJSY00" alt="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?url=1SPwzo_0w1ZFJSY00" width="1920" height="1080" ><p>Say it ain't so, Rafa!</p><p>With a single video message shared to social media, Rafael Nadal broke the hearts of tennis fans the world over as the 22-time Grand Slam winner and former world No. 1 announced his retirement from the sport at the end of the season.</p><p>"It is obviously a difficult decision, one that has taken me some time to make," the 38-year-old said in Spanish. "But in this life, everything has a beginning and an end. And I think it’s the appropriate time to put an end to a career that has been long and much more successful than I could have ever imagined."</p><blockquote class="instagram-media" data-instgrm-captioned="" data-instgrm-permalink="https://www.instagram.com/reel/DA8EpTsg3iV/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" data-instgrm-version="14" style="background:#FFF;border:0;border-radius:3px;box-shadow:0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15);margin:1px;max-width:658px;min-width:326px;padding:0;width:99.375%;width:-webkit-calc(100% - 2px);width:calc(100% - 2px)"><div style="padding:16px"><a href="https://www.instagram.com/reel/DA8EpTsg3iV/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" style="background:#FFFFFF;line-height:0;padding:0 0;text-align:center;text-decoration:none;width:100%" target="_blank"><div style="display:flex;flex-direction:row;align-items:center"><div style="background-color:#F4F4F4;border-radius:50%;flex-grow:0;height:40px;margin-right:14px;width:40px"></div><div style="display:flex;flex-direction:column;flex-grow:1;justify-content:center"><div style="background-color:#F4F4F4;border-radius:4px;flex-grow:0;height:14px;margin-bottom:6px;width:100px"></div><div style="background-color:#F4F4F4;border-radius:4px;flex-grow:0;height:14px;width:60px"></div></div></div><div style="padding:19% 0"></div><div style="display:block;height:50px;margin:0 auto 12px;width:50px"><svg width="50px" height="50px" viewbox="0 0 60 60" version="1.1" xmlns="https://www.w3.org/2000/svg" xmlns:xlink="https://www.w3.org/1999/xlink"><g stroke="none" stroke-width="1" fill="none" fill-rule="evenodd"><g transform="translate(-511.000000, -20.000000)" fill="#000000"><g><path d="M556.869,30.41 C554.814,30.41 553.148,32.076 553.148,34.131 C553.148,36.186 554.814,37.852 556.869,37.852 C558.924,37.852 560.59,36.186 560.59,34.131 C560.59,32.076 558.924,30.41 556.869,30.41 M541,60.657 C535.114,60.657 530.342,55.887 530.342,50 C530.342,44.114 535.114,39.342 541,39.342 C546.887,39.342 551.658,44.114 551.658,50 C551.658,55.887 546.887,60.657 541,60.657 M541,33.886 C532.1,33.886 524.886,41.1 524.886,50 C524.886,58.899 532.1,66.113 541,66.113 C549.9,66.113 557.115,58.899 557.115,50 C557.115,41.1 549.9,33.886 541,33.886 M565.378,62.101 C565.244,65.022 564.756,66.606 564.346,67.663 C563.803,69.06 563.154,70.057 562.106,71.106 C561.058,72.155 560.06,72.803 558.662,73.347 C557.607,73.757 556.021,74.244 553.102,74.378 C549.944,74.521 548.997,74.552 541,74.552 C533.003,74.552 532.056,74.521 528.898,74.378 C525.979,74.244 524.393,73.757 523.338,73.347 C521.94,72.803 520.942,72.155 519.894,71.106 C518.846,70.057 518.197,69.06 517.654,67.663 C517.244,66.606 516.755,65.022 516.623,62.101 C516.479,58.943 516.448,57.996 516.448,50 C516.448,42.003 516.479,41.056 516.623,37.899 C516.755,34.978 517.244,33.391 517.654,32.338 C518.197,30.938 518.846,29.942 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C511.326,65.562 511.834,67.743 512.574,69.651 C513.342,71.625 514.368,73.296 516.035,74.965 C517.703,76.634 519.376,77.658 521.349,78.425 C523.257,79.167 525.438,79.673 528.631,79.82 C531.831,79.965 532.853,80.001 541,80.001 C549.148,80.001 550.169,79.965 553.369,79.82 C556.562,79.673 558.743,79.167 560.652,78.425 C562.623,77.658 564.297,76.634 565.965,74.965 C567.633,73.296 568.659,71.625 569.425,69.651 C570.167,67.743 570.674,65.562 570.82,62.369 C570.966,59.17 571,58.147 571,50 C571,41.851 570.966,40.831 570.82,37.631"></path></g></g></g></svg></div><div style="padding-top:8px"><div style="color:#3897f0;font-family:Arial,sans-serif;font-size:14px;font-style:normal;font-weight:550;line-height:18px">View this post on Instagram</div></div><div style="padding:12.5% 0"></div><div style="display:flex;flex-direction:row;margin-bottom:14px;align-items:center"><div><div style="background-color:#F4F4F4;border-radius:50%;height:12.5px;width:12.5px;transform:translateX(0px) translateY(7px)"></div><div style="background-color:#F4F4F4;height:12.5px;transform:rotate(-45deg) translateX(3px) translateY(1px);width:12.5px;flex-grow:0;margin-right:14px;margin-left:2px"></div><div style="background-color:#F4F4F4;border-radius:50%;height:12.5px;width:12.5px;transform:translateX(9px) translateY(-18px)"></div></div><div style="margin-left:8px"><div style="background-color:#F4F4F4;border-radius:50%;flex-grow:0;height:20px;width:20px"></div><div style="width:0;height:0;border-top:2px solid transparent;border-left:6px solid #f4f4f4;border-bottom:2px solid transparent;transform:translateX(16px) translateY(-4px) rotate(30deg)"></div></div><div style="margin-left:auto"><div style="width:0;border-top:8px solid #F4F4F4;border-right:8px solid transparent;transform:translateY(16px)"></div><div style="background-color:#F4F4F4;flex-grow:0;height:12px;width:16px;transform:translateY(-4px)"></div><div style="width:0;height:0;border-top:8px solid #F4F4F4;border-left:8px solid transparent;transform:translateY(-4px) translateX(8px)"></div></div></div><div style="display:flex;flex-direction:column;flex-grow:1;justify-content:center;margin-bottom:24px"><div style="background-color:#F4F4F4;border-radius:4px;flex-grow:0;height:14px;margin-bottom:6px;width:224px"></div><div style="background-color:#F4F4F4;border-radius:4px;flex-grow:0;height:14px;width:144px"></div></div></a><p style="color:#c9c8cd;font-family:Arial,sans-serif;font-size:14px;line-height:17px;margin-bottom:0;margin-top:8px;overflow:hidden;padding:8px 0 7px;text-align:center;text-overflow:ellipsis;white-space:nowrap"><a href="https://www.instagram.com/reel/DA8EpTsg3iV/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" style="color:#c9c8cd;font-family:Arial,sans-serif;font-size:14px;font-style:normal;font-weight:normal;line-height:17px;text-decoration:none" target="_blank">A post shared by Rafa Nadal (@rafaelnadal)</a></p></div><input type="image" src="empty.gif" style="opacity:0" onerror="s=document.createElement(&quot;script&quot;);s.src=&quot;https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/embed.js&quot;;document.body.appendChild(s);delay=function(){window.instgrm.Embeds.process()};setTimeout(delay,500)"></blockquote><p>"What a career, Rafa! I always hoped this day would never come," wrote 20-time Grand Slam winner Roger Federer, Nadal's long time rival and great friend, in the comment section of the Spaniard's Instagram post.</p><p>"Thank you for the unforgettable memories and all your incredible achievements in the game we love. It’s been an absolute honor!"</p><p>Coco Gauff also took to the comments to tell Nadal, "You are amazing! It’s been so incredible to witness your greatness and work ethic and be able to learn from it. Wishing you all the best in the next chapter."</p><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="es" dir="ltr">Sabíamos que un día esto llegaría.Un orgullo haber sido parte de tu viaje,al final como entrenador pero siempre como amigo.Gracias por tanto 💔💔 <a href="https://t.co/5b9Fwpnxax">https://t.co/5b9Fwpnxax</a></p>— Carlos Moya (@Charlymoya) <a href="https://twitter.com/Charlymoya/status/1844324412876853511?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 10, 2024</a><input type="image" src="empty.gif" style="opacity:0" onerror="s=document.createElement(&quot;script&quot;);s.src=&quot;https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js&quot;;document.body.appendChild(s);"></blockquote><p>"RAFA Forever!! Thank you for everything legend," wrote Casper Ruud, while Matteo Berrettini simply shared, "LEYENDA (LEGEND)."</p><p>As the rest of the tennis world woke up to the news, Rafa's fans weren't the only ones taking to social media on Thursday to ask him to reconsider.</p><p>"Nope, I/we refuse this application to retire," wrote Great Britain's Katie Boulter, while former world No. 13 Nick Kyrgios said: "Rafa don't retire I wanna play you (one) last time."</p><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Rafa don’t retire I wanna play you 1 last time</p>— Nicholas Kyrgios (@NickKyrgios) <a href="https://twitter.com/NickKyrgios/status/1844314650466451485?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 10, 2024</a><input type="image" src="empty.gif" style="opacity:0" onerror="s=document.createElement(&quot;script&quot;);s.src=&quot;https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js&quot;;document.body.appendChild(s);"></blockquote><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">We had our differences but you were one hell of a warrior. Best wishes and goodluck with whatever comes next. <a href="https://t.co/ZRHMRcSqFI">https://t.co/ZRHMRcSqFI</a></p>— Nicholas Kyrgios (@NickKyrgios) <a href="https://twitter.com/NickKyrgios/status/1844314926032224427?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 10, 2024</a><input type="image" src="empty.gif" style="opacity:0" onerror="s=document.createElement(&quot;script&quot;);s.src=&quot;https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js&quot;;document.body.appendChild(s);"></blockquote><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Nope, I/we refuse this application to retire <a href="https://t.co/QuDOfuZ65I">https://t.co/QuDOfuZ65I</a></p>— Katie Boulter (@katiecboulter) <a href="https://twitter.com/katiecboulter/status/1844315012225196352?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 10, 2024</a><input type="image" src="empty.gif" style="opacity:0" onerror="s=document.createElement(&quot;script&quot;);s.src=&quot;https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js&quot;;document.body.appendChild(s);"></blockquote><p>Former world No. 2 Ons Jabeur thanked Nadal "for inspiring me and all of us" over the years:</p><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Thank you <a href="https://twitter.com/RafaelNadal?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@RafaelNadal</a> for inspiring me and all of us ❤️🙏<br><br>You will be missed 😢❤️ <a href="https://t.co/uixuSLG0V8">pic.twitter.com/uixuSLG0V8</a></p>— Ons Jabeur (@Ons_Jabeur) <a href="https://twitter.com/Ons_Jabeur/status/1844324612286673199?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 10, 2024</a><input type="image" src="empty.gif" style="opacity:0" onerror="s=document.createElement(&quot;script&quot;);s.src=&quot;https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js&quot;;document.body.appendChild(s);"></blockquote><p>"Thank you for everything you have done for this sport," wrote Caroline Garcia in Spanish, while her countryman Lucas Pouille perfectly summed up the mood of French tennis fans: "Rafa and (Richard Gasquet) on the same day is too much."</p><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="es" dir="ltr">Gracias a ti por todo lo que has hecho por este deporte. Se te echará de menos en los torneos 🥹🙌🏻 <a href="https://t.co/NbZA0O2iTK">https://t.co/NbZA0O2iTK</a></p>— Caroline Garcia (@CaroGarcia) <a href="https://twitter.com/CaroGarcia/status/1844315361887580650?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 10, 2024</a><input type="image" src="empty.gif" style="opacity:0" onerror="s=document.createElement(&quot;script&quot;);s.src=&quot;https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js&quot;;document.body.appendChild(s);"></blockquote><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="fr" dir="ltr">Rafa et Richie le même jour c’est trop 😞</p>— Lucas Pouille (@la_pouille) <a href="https://twitter.com/la_pouille/status/1844318734732952052?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 10, 2024</a><input type="image" src="empty.gif" style="opacity:0" onerror="s=document.createElement(&quot;script&quot;);s.src=&quot;https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js&quot;;document.body.appendChild(s);"></blockquote><p>Check even more social posts below, as current and former players and legends proccess the news of Nadal's retirement:</p><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Possessed every quality in an athlete that you want for your own kids to try &amp; emulate<br><br><br><br>Kindness, respect, hard-working, loyal, generous, belief &amp; a willingness to fight for every single point. A role model<br><br><br><br>An inspiration to every generation &amp; all-time legend<br><br><br><br>Well done, Rafa 👏 <a href="https://t.co/rIZCXwBNdn">https://t.co/rIZCXwBNdn</a></p>— Darren Cahill (@darren_cahill) <a href="https://twitter.com/darren_cahill/status/1844319484221456562?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 10, 2024</a><input type="image" src="empty.gif" style="opacity:0" onerror="s=document.createElement(&quot;script&quot;);s.src=&quot;https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js&quot;;document.body.appendChild(s);"></blockquote><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="es" dir="ltr">Grande Rafa. <a href="https://twitter.com/RafaelNadal?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@RafaelNadal</a> Gracias para todas las memorias ………. Gracias amigo</p>— andyroddick (@andyroddick) <a href="https://twitter.com/andyroddick/status/1844327014326730891?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 10, 2024</a><input type="image" src="empty.gif" style="opacity:0" onerror="s=document.createElement(&quot;script&quot;);s.src=&quot;https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js&quot;;document.body.appendChild(s);"></blockquote><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="art" dir="ltr">👑 <a href="https://t.co/24Tba4KkuR">https://t.co/24Tba4KkuR</a></p>— Thanasi Kokkinakis (@TKokkinakis) <a href="https://twitter.com/TKokkinakis/status/1844321321645375903?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 10, 2024</a><input type="image" src="empty.gif" style="opacity:0" onerror="s=document.createElement(&quot;script&quot;);s.src=&quot;https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js&quot;;document.body.appendChild(s);"></blockquote></div></body>

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Social Reaction: Rafael Nadal’s peers and rivals 'reject' his application to retire

With a single video message shared to social media, Rafael Nadal broke the hearts of tennis fans the world over as the 22-time Grand Slam winner and former world No. 1 announced his retirement from the sport at the end of the season. \"It is obviously a difficult decision, one...

With a single video message shared to social media, Rafael Nadal broke the hearts of tennis fans the world over as the 22-time Grand Slam winner and former world No. 1 announced his retirement from the sport at the end of the season. "It is obviously a difficult decision, one...

Social Reaction: Rafael Nadal’s peers and rivals 'reject' his application to retire

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