After long fight for glory, Nadal leaves with a legacy of memories

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Rafael Nadal, whose career ended on Tuesday when Spain were knocked out of the Davis Cup, was the “King of Clay” who also reigned on every other surface as he accumulated 22 Grand Slam titles while his even-keeled and humble demeanour, on and off the court, endeared him to rivals and legions of fans.

One of his defining qualities was the astonishing ability to tough out marathon wins, but he clearly enjoyed playing and competing and showed humility in victory and poise in defeat.

“The important legacy is that all the people I have met during these 20 years have a good human memory of me,” said the 38-year-old Spanish superstar who will retire from tennis at the Davis Cup Finals in Malaga this week.

“At the end of the day, the personal issue, education, respect and the affection you can treat people with comes before the professional issue, because that is what remains.”

Nadal was born on the island of Mallorca in June 1986. His father Sebastian was a businessman, his mother Ana gave up working to raise her children.

One of his uncles, Miguel Angel Nadal, played professional football for Barcelona, although Rafa grew up to be a Real Madrid fan.

As a child, Nadal played football in the streets of his hometown of Manacor, before focusing on tennis under the coaching of another uncle, Toni Nadal, who guided his career from 2005 to 2017.