To mark the end of another thrilling season, ATPTour.com is unveiling our annual ‘Best Of’ series, which will reflect on the most intriguing rivalries, matches, comebacks, upsets and more. Icons Rafael Nadal and Dominic Thiem lead Part 2 of our ‘Best Of’ retirements story while Andy Murray was featured in Part 1.
Rafael Nadal
It was a Spanish sendoff for not only a country’s hero, nor just a tennis icon, but rather a sporting legend. Nadal competed in his final professional event in November at the Davis Cup Final 8. The 38-year-old, surrounded by teammates, friends and family, wiped away tears while addressing the crowd during an on-court ceremony.
One of the best to ever compete on the ATP Tour, Nadal’s final match was a singles rubber defeat against Dutchman Botic van de Zandschulp. To the loud tune of Spanish chants like ‘Vamos Rafa!’, Nadal applied the finishing touches to his career, fighting his hardest until the bitter end.
“It’s been an emotional day,” Nadal said after his final match. “I knew it could be my last match as a professional tennis player. The moments leading up to it were emotional, kind of difficult to handle, in general. So many emotions. I tried to do it as well as possible.”
Nadal’s sportsmanship and grace in both victory and defeat endeared him to fans worldwide. That humility was again on display when Nadal said in his farewell speech, “I’m the one who should be thankful… to so many people that it’s difficult to know where to start.”
Nadal’s two-decade career was defined by competitive excellence and relentless determination. He set benchmarks that may never be surpassed, including an extraordinary record of 14 Roland Garros titles. He spent 209 weeks as No. 1 in the PIF ATP Rankings, won 1,080 matches and lifted a whopping 92 tour-level titles.
A host of Nadal’s records seem as if they could go untouched for an eternity. He won an ATP Tour title in a record 19 straight seasons (2004-22) and earned a record 23 wins vs. World No. 1s. He was ranked in the Top 10 for a record 912 consecutive weeks (2005-23). At ATP Masters 1000 events, Nadal earned a record 410 victories and second-most titles (36).
The Spaniard became the first men’s player in history to complete the Career Grand Slam twice. He also won two Olympic gold medals (2008 Beijing singles, 2016 Rio doubles w/M. Lopez) and helped Spain win the Davis Cup four times.
“I think as a tennis player, I just want to be remembered for the results I had. As a person, I hope to be remembered as a positive example of being respectful, well-mannered, and a good person,” Nadal said earlier this year. Read Nadal Longform Tribute.
Dominic Thiem
There was a buzz at Thiem’s home tournament, the Erste Bank Open in Vienna, as the Austrian tennis hero said goodbye to the sport.
“When I think back on my career, the main emotions are really big gratitude for everything I was able to experience,” Thiem said. “I was very lucky to stay healthy [most of] the time to be able to realise basically all my dreams. And yeah, I was never expecting a career like that when I was young. All I wanted was to be a professional tennis player, whatever comes with it.”
The 31-year-old won the 2020 US Open and also reached the final of three other Slams. Thiem won a total of 17 tour-level titles, achieved a career-high PIF ATP Ranking of No. 3 and was ensconced in the Top 10 for the better part of six years.
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Thiem achieved such success in arguably the most difficult era of tennis, with Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic not relinquishing their spots atop the sport. The only players with better Lexus ATP Head2Head records than Thiem against Federer, Nadal and Djokovic are… the Big Three themselves.
One key win for Thiem came against Federer at Indian Wells in 2019. It was a thrilling championship match, which Thiem reflected on by saying, ‘Roger was toying with me’, in the early stages of the final. But the Austrian found his best level and claimed at the time what was his biggest title. It was Thiem’s lone ATP Masters 1000 triumph.
Thiem’s 2020 US Open triumph was sealed with a two-sets-to-love comeback against Alexander Zverev. The Austrian stormed back and escaped the German 7-6 in a nervy fifth set from both players. It was unusually eerie inside Arthur Ashe Stadium as the final took place at the height of the Covid-19 pandemic and the whole tournament was conducted with no fans on site. There was no raucous crowd to help turn nerves into energy. Rather, it was a white-knuckle ride to the finish that featured Thiem earning one of the biggest moments of his career. Read Thiem Longform Tribute.
Wesley Koolhof
Koolhof knows what it is like to stand atop the PIF ATP Doubles Rankings and be crowned champion at some of the sport’s biggest events. The Dutchman won six ATP Masters 1000 titles — three each with Nikola Mektic and Neal Skupski, respectively — and the 2023 Wimbledon trophy (w/ Skupski).
Koolhof qualified for the Nitto ATP Finals four times and won the season finale alongside Mektic in 2020. At this year’s event in Turin, Koolhof was celebrated for his standout career. He represented his home country one final time in Davis Cup before officially retiring.
“I don’t know what will be next, but after taking some time off I’d love to stay in tennis,” Koolhof said. “In this world, you meet so many people, and tennis has always been part of my life… I will just wait and see what comes around the corner, and you’ll see me somewhere.” Read Koolhof’s, ‘My Point’ essay.
Pablo Cuevas
The highest-ranked Uruguayan in history (No. 19 in 2016), Cuevas’ hot shots compilation video would stand up against any player. He was a flashy shotmaker who struck the ball cleanly, as evident by his six tour-level titles. En route to his 2016 Rio de Janeiro crown, Cuevas upset Rafael Nadal in a semi-final three-setter, which was the Uruguayan’s second of three wins against Top 5 players.
Cuevas, who announced his retirement in September, also won nine doubles titles, including Roland Garros in 2008 with Luis Horna. He lifted two ATP Masters 1000 doubles trophies: 2015 Rome with David Marrero and 2017 Monte-Carlo with Rohan Bopanna.
“When I was a boy, I didn’t know what it meant to be a tennis player, and I didn’t have a ranking in mind that I wanted to reach, I just wanted it to be my job,” Cuevas said. “Then it became much more, being Top 100, Top 50, winning tournaments, but it was always about much more than the numbers… It was what I enjoyed doing and I was able to enjoy myself a lot along the way.” Read Cuevas Retirement Feature.
Filip Krajinovic
Krajinovic fought back tears as he played his final match in the US Open qualifying. The Serbian reached a career-high World No. 26, competed in five ATP Tour finals and defeated four Top 10 opponents. The career highlight that stands out the most to Krajinovic is his run to the final of the 2017 Rolex Paris Masters, his lone championship match at an ATP Masters 1000 event.
“I am very proud. I’m very proud of my career,” Krajinovic said. “The only thing where I’m a little bit sad is I didn’t win an ATP Nadal, Thiem headline late-season retirements in 2024. I had five finals, five tough finals. That’s the only thing I wanted to have, but didn’t happen for some reason. But everything else I would sign [for] because I think I played the way I wanted. I had very good results and my highest was 26, which I really appreciate. I left the court happy, because I think that I did well.” Read Krajinovic Retirement Feature.
Donald Young
In the last event of his career, Young partnered WTA player Taylor Townsend to a dream run to the US Open mixed doubles final. The former No. 38 in the PIF ATP Rankings bade farewell to a career in which he reached two tour-level finals. Born in Chicago, Young made a splash as a junior No. 1, a ranking he achieved at just 15 years old.
The lefty earned tour-level wins against the likes of Andy Murray, Gael Monfils and Tomas Berdych. He twice reached the fourth round of his home Slam and faced each member of the ‘Big Three’ at major tournaments. Young will never forget his time on Tour.
“It just changed the trajectory of my life, my family’s life,” Young said. “And for that, I’m definitely indebted and grateful to tennis.” Read Young Retirement Feature.
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