www射-国产免费一级-欧美福利-亚洲成人福利-成人一区在线观看-亚州成人

Global EditionASIA 中文雙語Fran?ais
Sports
Home / Sports / Tennis

RG pays 'unforgettable' tribute to retired 'King of Clay' Nadal

Updated: 2025-05-27 10:10
Share
Share - WeChat
Recently retired Spanish great Rafael Nadal stands alone on Court Philippe Chatrier at Roland Garros on Sunday, as fans show their appreciation of his record at the French Open in a special ceremony. AFP

PARIS — Rafael Nadal was given a rousing reception as the 'King of Clay' stepped onto Court Philippe Chatrier for the final time on Sunday in an "unforgettable" ceremony to celebrate his career at the French Open.

The 38-year-old, who retired from tennis last November, was serenaded by the Roland Garros crowd, with spectators wearing different colored T-shirts to create the message "14 RG, Rafa".

Nadal dominated the French Open after winning on his debut as a teenager in 2005, lifting the trophy a record-breaking 14 times.

The Spaniard finished with a remarkable 112-4 win-loss record at the clay-court Grand Slam.

He last won the title in 2022 and played his final match on the Paris clay last year, when he was defeated by Alexander Zverev in the first round.

"I don't know how to start. I've been playing on this court for 20 years. I suffered, I won, I lost. I have lived many emotions here on this court," an emotional Nadal told the crowd after watching a video of his career highlights at Roland Garros.

Nadal's family and friends watched from the player's box, along with many of his former coaching staff, including his uncle Toni.

"It has been unforgettable, plenty of emotions for a guy like me that doesn't love these kinds of things, because I'm still a little bit shy for all this stuff," Nadal told reporters.

"I don't much like being the center of attention for these things. It was enough when I was playing tennis. But, I enjoyed it, honestly. I suffered a little bit with the emotions, but I enjoyed a lot."

Old rivals pay homage

Nadal's long-time rivals Novak Djokovic, fresh from winning his 100th ATP title on Saturday, Roger Federer and Andy Murray all joined him on court.

The trio walked out after Nadal's speech to greet their fellow former world No 1, to a deafening roar from the fans.

"To have my three biggest rivals there on the court with me meant a lot," Nadal said of the other members of the 'Big Four'.

"At the same time, it's a great message for the world, I think, that best rivals, the toughest rivals probably in the history of our sport, are able to be good colleagues, to respect each other.

"You don't need to hate the opponent to try to beat him with all your force. And that's the message that I think we showed people, we showed the new generations, and, in some way, that's our legacy."

Nadal hung up his racket following the 2024 Davis Cup Finals in Malaga, initially denying him an opportunity to wave goodbye to his adoring fans in Paris.

His tally of 14 victories at a single Grand Slam appears unlikely to be beaten, with Margaret Court's 11 Australian Open titles second on the all-time list.

Nadal was presented with a special trophy commemorating his French Open record, with a mark of his footprint carved into the clay.

"I didn't know anything about the ceremony," Nadal said.

"Only thing that I knew before going there was that there was going to be a video when I go on, then my speech and then a couple of surprises.

"Then, when I saw that, I thought it was going to be just for this year. Knowing that's going to be there forever, it's a present that I can't describe in words."

The 22-time Grand Slam champion received a send-off after his final match at the Davis Cup, but French tennis federation chief Gilles Moretton said earlier this year that "the tribute was not, in my opinion, what it should have been".

He said he had gone to visit Nadal at his home in December, along with Roland Garros tournament director Amelie Mauresmo, to discuss plans for Sunday's ceremony.

AFP

Most Popular

Highlights

What's Hot
Top
BACK TO THE TOP
English
Copyright 1995 - . All rights reserved. The content (including but not limited to text, photo, multimedia information, etc) published in this site belongs to China Daily Information Co (CDIC). Without written authorization from CDIC, such content shall not be republished or used in any form. Note: Browsers with 1024*768 or higher resolution are suggested for this site.
License for publishing multimedia online 0108263

Registration Number: 130349
FOLLOW US
主站蜘蛛池模板: 日本三级全黄三级a | 一级毛片在线看 | 91成年人视频 | 俄罗斯aa毛片一级 | 国产午夜亚洲精品理论片不卡 | 国产色手机在线观看播放 | 日韩久久精品 | 男人的天堂久久精品激情 | 成人毛片全部免费观看 | 久草网视频在线 | 亚洲视频中文字幕 | 91精品一区二区三区在线 | heyzo国产亚洲高清 | 国产一区二区三区免费看 | 日产一一到六区网站免费 | 狠狠色丁香九九婷婷综合五月 | 久久99亚洲精品久久久久 | 欧美日韩亚洲视频 | 草草影院地址 | 欧美成人看片黄a免费看 | 国内精品久久国产大陆 | 日韩中文字幕在线观看视频 | 一级特级aaaa毛片免费观看 | 在线观看毛片视频 | 亚洲视频国产视频 | 男人的天堂在线观看视频不卡 | 免费一级特黄 | 亚洲精品一区二区三区www | caoporen个人免费公开视频 | 国内精品久久久久影院不卡 | 国产免费久久 | 欧美黄www免费 | 一区二区日韩欧美 | 成人亚洲网站 | 成人黄色免费网址 | 亚洲成人免费在线 | 性理论片 | 国产成人精品综合 | 最爽的乱淫片免费 | 操欧美女| 女人成午夜大片7777在线 |