Rafael Nadal was comprehensively defeated 6-4, 6-4 by Botic van de Zandschulp in the opening Davis Cup rubber between Spain and the Netherlands
Nadal beaten by Botic van de Zandschulp in Málagacould not stop his emotions from flowing. Tears welled up in his eyes and his hands visibly shook by his side. Finally, the last stage of this epic 30-year journey had begun, a moment that he never wanted to arrive but had no choice but to face.
This has been a surreal, frenzied few days in the build up to this farewell for arguably Spain’s greatest ever athlete. The streets around the arena are filled with as much signage saluting Nadal’s career as there are advertisements for the Davis Cup, one of the most significant events on the tennis calendar.
For Van de Zandschulp, the world No 80, it was a short and understated lead-in. Nadal’s introduction, however, was practically a PowerPoint presentation. After each of his major titles – 22 grand slam titles, two Olympic gold medals, four Davis Cup victories – were read out, the crowd responded with an exclamation of “”. It took minutes for the announcer to work through one of the greatest ever resumes a tennis player has compiled.
There were still moments that the 11,000-strong audience will never forget. At one point, Nadal chased down a lob and fired an overhead skyhook with his back to the net before sending the fans to their feet by winning the point. Down 4-1 and a double break, Nadal pulled a break back through his sheer force of will, which in the past would have been the start of an epic comeback. This time, he did not come close.
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