May 1, 2024 – 11:48 a.m
Rafael Nadal lost 5:7, 4:6 to the 30th seeded Czech Jiří Lehečká in the round of 16 at the tennis tournament in Madrid. In all likelihood, this was the last match of the 37-year-old athlete, who is expected to retire soon, in one of his favorite tournaments and in what is considered his most important home field.
After the match, the Spanish tennis player was applauded by the audience for several minutes, while the molinos depicting his five previous victories in Madrid and his nickname (Rafa) were rolled down in the stadium, and sequences of images from his previous matches were played on the projector.
The 22-time Grand Slam winner is the tennis player he said after the celebration, in Barcelona two weeks ago, after being eliminated in the second round, he wasn’t even sure he would ever play a professional game again. In comparison, he was in the game in the second week in Madrid. If Nadal had won the match against Lehečka, he could have reached the next round and played his 100th ATP thousandth quarterfinal.
Nadal is now preparing for the Rome tournament and Roland Garros, and then the Olympics. The Spanish dream pair of Rafael Nadal and Carlos Alcaraz may even meet at the Paris Games.
From our partners
Follow us on Facebook too!
