MADRID (AP) — Rafael Nadal is retiring from professional tennis at age 38, he announced in a video message Thursday, after winning 22 Grand Slam titles — 14 at the French Open — along the way an unprecedented era he shared Rivals Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic.

Nadal has rarely competed in the last two seasons due to injuries and said next month's Davis Cup final would mark his farewell to the sport. He had Hip surgery in 2023 and only took part in two of the last eight major tournaments.

“The reality is that it has been a difficult few years, particularly the last two. I don’t think I could play without restrictions,” said Nadal. “It's obviously a difficult decision that took me some time. But in this life everything has a beginning and an end.”

Nadal's relentless, physical style of play – he pursued every point as if it were his last, sprinting and sliding into the right spot for the leaping bullwhip of a left forehand – made him special one of the game's greats and the undisputed king of clay, the slow, red surface on which he dominated.

His record 14 French Open championships are more than anyone, man or woman, has won at any of the sport's four major tournaments, a dominance celebrated by a statue of Nadal that stands near the main entrance to the grounds of Roland Garros and in the shadow of its main stadium, Court Philippe Chatrier.

In a result that symbolized the state of his body and his career, he was eliminated in the first round of the French Open this year, with a straight sets loss to eventual runner-up Alexander Zverev.

Nadal returned to this venue southwest of Paris for the Summer Olympics, where he lost in the second round of singles to his old rival Djokovic and reached the quarterfinals of men's doubles with Carlos Alcaraz.

Nadal hasn't played since. His departure also comes while he is representing Spain in the Davis Cup in Malaga.

In addition to his triumphs at the French Open, he won four trophies at the US Open and two each at Wimbledon and the Australian Open, giving him a career Grand Slam.

“I think it is the right time to end a long and much more successful career than I could have ever imagined,” Nadal said.

His last two major titles came in 2022, in Melbourne in January and in Paris in June, overtaking Federer, who held the men's record of 20 Grand Slam titles when he announced his retirement at age 41. Federer said goodbye at the end of 2022 Working with Nadal in a doubles match at the Laver Cup.

Both have since been surpassed by the 37-year-old Djokovic, who is up to 24 majors.

Much of Nadal's success has been seen, fairly or not, through the prism of his encounters with Federer and Djokovic. The tennis world and many others have been busy debating who is most deserving of the nickname “GOAT” – “Greatest of All Time”. The world, tennis or otherwise, was fascinated by their matchups, their different styles and personalities.

Who among those who witnessed it could forget Nadal versus Federer in the 2008 Wimbledon final? Or Nadal vs. Djokovic in Quarterfinals of the French Open 2022? Or Nadal against Djokovic in the final of the Australian Open 2012? And so forth.

Nadal played Djokovic 60 times, a record for two men in the Open era; Djokovic leads 31-29 overall while Nadal leads 5-4 in the Slam final. Nadal met Federer 40 times; Nadal leads 24-16 overall, including 6-3 in the Slam final.

“Thank you for the unforgettable memories and all your incredible achievements in the game we love,” Federer told Nadal via social media.

This is definitely appropriate Nadal's last major title came at the French Open (he beat Djokovic on the side) two years ago and while he was receiving painkilling injections for chronic pain in his left foot. He has struggled with and often overcome various injury issues over the years, and his 2023 and 2024 seasons were both limited due to hip and abdominal muscle issues.

Nadal injured his hip flexor in a second-round loss at the Australian Open in January 2023 and was out for the rest of the year; There was an operation for this in June.

After briefly making his comeback in January this year during a preparatory event for the Australian Open, he was forced to withdraw from the first major tournament of the year due to a torn hip muscle and was then sidelined again until his return to his beloved clay court at the Barcelona Open in April .

Nadal dates back to late 2022 when he was beaten by Frances Tiafoe in the fourth round at Flushing Meadows. Nadal is just 14-14, including 12-7 this year.

But his overall record is unimpeachable: a total of 209 weeks at No. 1 in the ATP rankings and almost 18 years of consecutive weeks in the top 10; 92 individual titles; 1,080-227 win-loss record; almost 135 million US dollars in prize money.

“Really, everything I experienced was a dream come true,” Nadal said. “I leave with the absolute certainty that I did my best and tried hard in every way.”

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Fendrich reported from Philadelphia. Associated Press writers Joseph Wilson and James Ellingworth contributed to this report.

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AP Tennis: https://apnews.com/hub/tennis