Rafael Nadal's historic career came to a close when the Netherlands defeated Spain in the Davis Cup. During an emotional speech that ran over 10 minutes long, Nadal spoke to more than 10,000 fans in Malaga. After 23 years in the game and many struggles with injury, the 38-year-old retires as the second-most successful men's singles player of all time.
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00:00One never wants to get to this moment, I'm not tired of playing tennis,
00:26my body has reached a point where it doesn't want to play tennis anymore,
00:31so we have to accept the situation.
00:34I feel super privileged, I could make my career out of one of my hobbies,
00:43and it's much longer than I could have imagined.
00:47I can only thank life and all these people I have behind me,
00:53some of them are not here, but many of them are.
00:56You have given me family, especially without any doubt.
01:01Team, friends, I don't want to personalize it right now,
01:08because it's really difficult and I'm going to forget about people,
01:12but you have been an unforgettable part of my day to day during all these years.
01:23I'm super passionate about sports in general,
01:27I'm going to retire from professional tennis, but I'm still here.
01:31I hope to continue being a good ambassador for tennis.
01:52It was a lot of emotions, the speech, the farewells, the tears,
02:04my mom cried, I also had red eyes,
02:10but I think it was Rafa who had the most emotions.
02:13I think Rafa will always be connected to the world of sport,
02:17for the Spaniards in particular, he has a lot of influence on many people,
02:22at least on us.
02:24Not only on a sporting level, but also on a personal level.
02:26He is a person who has a lot of influence,
02:28and we believe that he will continue to be connected to sport,
02:31and in a personal way, he will continue to be there for a long time.
02:47Rafa!