“I’m not tired of playing tennis, but it’s my body that doesn’t want to play anymore, so I have to accept the situation,“ Rafael Nadal expressed in a tearful farewell speech following a 6-4, 6-4 defeat to Botic Van de Zandschulp of the Netherlands in the Davis Cup on Tuesday. The Spanish tennis star, who had initially planned to pair up with Carlos Alcaraz for the doubles match, made a surprising decision to play the singles match instead and subsequently retire from professional tennis. And what turned out to be his final match is ultimately overshadowed by the criticism of French journalist Benoit Maylin.

Speaking on the Winamax TV show “Sans Filet,” Maylin criticized the decision-makers involved. The French journalist called Nadal’s inclusion in singles “a total mistake”, including David Ferrer, the Spanish tennis federation, the presidents of the Malaga region, and local authorities. “Rafa has said it over and over again: ‘I’m not here to say goodbye but to help Spain win this Davis Cup,’” Maylin said, highlighting Nadal’s own intent to prioritize team success over individual goals.

“The aim of the game is to find yourself in the semi-finals with Bautista and Alcaraz, who will succeed in beating Holland because we had to avoid the doubles. But you don’t put Nadal, you never put Nadal, you know very well that the guy is not up to par. If they had played normally, we would have found ourselves on Saturday in the semi-finals, maybe Rafa would have had time to get into the competition and then play him in doubles. We can see that he is not up to par in singles. I don’t believe for a single second that he beat Bautista Agut in the practice sets.”

As far as the year 2024 is concerned, Nadal had a mixed season, with 12 wins and 7 losses. His last official tournament was the Paris Olympics in August, where he lost to Novak Djokovic in the second round. He also reached the doubles quarterfinals with Carlos Alcaraz and played two exhibition matches in Saudi Arabia last month.

Having led Spain to four Davis Cup titles-in 2004, 2008, 2009, 2011 and 2019, Nadal aimed to end his career on a high note. However, Spain ultimately lost the tie 2-1. Reflecting on his final match against Nadal, Van de Zandschulp noted some noticeable differences in his game.

Botic Van de Zandschulp reflects on facing a different Rafael Nadal at the Davis Cup

Van de Zandschulp broke Nadal’s serve in the ninth game of the first set, ultimately taking the set 6-4. He carried this momentum into the second set, establishing a 4-1 lead. However, Nadal displayed his characteristic fighting spirit and clawed back a break to make it 4-3. Despite this resurgence, Nadal was unable to break Van de Zandschulp’s serve again.

The Dutch player ultimately secured a 6-4, 6-4 victory, marking Nadal’s first singles loss in the Davis Cup since his debut in 2004. Following the encounter, Van de Zandschulp admitted, “I haven’t really thought about it, actually. Of course, it’s been different,” when asked about being the last player to defeat Nadal. “I played him twice. Played him in Roland Garros, Wimbledon. I think he was a different player there, maybe physically.”

Van de Zandschulp acknowledged the toll injuries and age may have taken on Nadal. “I thought today he was, I won’t say struggling, but of course you see he gets older, and the injuries are taking its toll, I think,” he added, offering a candid observation of Nadal’s physical state. Post match Van de Zandschulp took to Instagram to pay tribute to the former World number one. “A special evening for many reasons,” he said.

“The most special reason was that it was the end of Rafael Nadal’s career as a professional tennis player. He is the player that I watched for hundreds of hours since I was a young kid who dreamed of playing on the big stages. I never imagined playing against him one day, especially to share this moment with a true legend. Gracias, Rafa.” The match’s result brought down the curtain on Nadal’s magnificent career, which produced 92 titles, and four Davis Cup triumphs.