Rafael Nadal focused on the positive aspects of his farewell to tennis at the Davis Cup Finals after Team Spain's unexpected loss to the Netherlands.
Although no Davis Cup Finals tie is easy, Team Spain was probably quite happy to draw the Netherlands in the quarterfinal and avoid teams like Jannik Sinner's Italy, who progressed to the final after overcoming Australia.
The Spaniards were heavy favorites, but the Dutch team made a mockery of that by causing an upset and ruining the hopes of millions of fans who wanted Nadal to win the Davis Cup in his final appearance.
Nadal's final singles match ended in defeat against Botic van de Zandschulp. Speculation about whether the 38-year-old would play in the singles or doubles had been rampant for weeks, but Spanish captain David Ferrer opted for the former.
Carlos Alcaraz's win in the other singles match did not prove enough. Wesley Koolhof and van de Zandschulp sealed Team Netherlands' place in the semifinal by beating Carlos Alcaraz and Marcel Granollers.
That was followed by a retirement ceremony that has received much criticism. Nadal addressed the crowd for slightly over 10 minutes. A short video containing tributes from various stars was then played. Nadal said he would like to be remembered as a good person before the ceremony concluded.
Nadal's uncle and former coach, Toni, said he was disappointed with the ceremony, his current coach, Carlos Moya, called it shabby, while Spanish Davis Cup captain Ferrer said Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic not being in the arena watered down the ceremony.
It has been reported that Nadal's ceremony was planned for Friday since Team Spain was expected to beat the Netherlands, and Federer and Djokovic would attend then. However, whether that speculation is correct is unknown.
Despite those criticisms, Nadal has not complained about the ceremony. In an interview with Teledeporte, he expressed gratitude about getting to play in front of Spanish fans one final time and accepts that endings in sports are not always perfect.
"I've put an end to my professional career. I'm retired now, and the Davis Cup is always a beautiful experience. Being able to be on the team, being able to live the feeling of playing in front of Spanish fans again, I've enjoyed it."
"In the end, the result wasn't the one we all wanted, but that's the sport, things don't always turn out the way you want them to."
Nadal admitted his life has been altered in a radical way after retiring from professional tennis, but he is trying to accept it in as normal a fashion as possible after dedicating so many years to the sport.
"I've changed my life in a radical way. It's a big change, and I'm simply accepting this changing in a normal way, and accepting a life that is going to be different from what it's been in the last 30 years, but with the hope of living it, without a doubt."
The 14-time Grand Slam champion might seek advice about post-retirement life from Andy Murray, who also ended his career in 2024. Murray was surprised by how little he missed tennis, but the Briton will return to the sport as Novak Djokovic's coach.