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The Rafael Nadal Tribute Video That Brought Us to Tears: Gracias, Rafa!

Photo: Davis Cup

As Rafael Nadal brings his remarkable career to a close, tributes from fellow sports legends have poured in. Icons like David Beckham, Roger Federer, Novak Djokovic, Andy Murray, Serena William and Sergio Garcia have honored the tennis great. This emotional video, featuring Rafa reliving the unforgettable highlights of his career, truly moved us to tears. Be sure to watch the tribute!


19 comments

  1. Understand that we elderly women are very feelsome. I sit and cry..hearing your speach.
    I come from Norway..and play double tennis once a week. And I am proud to play tennis only because of YOU
    I cry again and wish You ALL GOOD IN THE FUTURE..You are a born Sports.man.
    God bless RICHLY..YOU AND YOUR FAMILY in Jesus Christ. Amen.
    My husband also play tennis and we were Nelly in Malaga in a tournament.
    My husband is 80 but think he is 20..
    We got depressive coming back to COLD AND EARLY DARK NORWAY…from the wonderful Spain
    Many elderly Scandinaviens buy or rent a flat i Spain and stay the over in the winter.month. We envy you our Wonderful Spanish People. Awesome
    we go again in februar to Spain. Logging already..Greetings from Mrs T. B. Oslo. Norway

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  2. Rafa,
    Your contributions to Tennis is so huge. Your energy, your sportsman-like will be missed and will always be remembered. You’re so polite on and off the circuit. You are the role model for the kids who are aspiring to be a champion like you. Your aspiration and fulfillment is difficult to duplicate.
    From the bottom of our heart here in Philippines, we love you so dearly. Gracias Rafa, for you gave us joy and I only watch tennis on tv if you’re playing in the circuit. I’ll pray hard that Rafa Jr will be another idol on and off the court.

    Much love and appreciation,
    JMFajardo

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    • As a devoted fan of Rafa since 2005 I am finding it very difficult to express how sad I am that I will never be able to watch him play tennis again. We knew this day would come but it is far from easy to come to terms with. No-one in tennis has captured the hearts of so many and deservedly so. A fantastic player who has remained humble and respectful throughout. Unique. I wasn’t able to watch his final match. (I am not sure that I could have enjoyed it.) A record 32 Davis Cup matches won for his country. That says it all. The superlatives are endless. I am confident that Rafa will eventually go on to enjoy life off the Tour, though the last year must have been very difficult for him, realising that his body would no longer allow him to continue to do what he loves. Fortunately, he is surrounded by a very close supportive and loving extended family and good friends, who will help him to make the difficult transition. No-one could have given more. I will now follow Carlos’ career with interest but no-one will ever replace Rafa on the Tour. Of that I am sure. Muchas Gracias Rafa. xxx

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      • P.S. I haven’t been able to watch the Davis Cup Tribute to Rafa at the moment either Mimi. I will have to build up to that because I know I will end up in tears.

        My very best wishes to all the GENUINE Rafa fans on this site and GOOD RIDDANCE to the minority whose only aims were to denigrate Rafa’s truly amazing achievements and upset the rest of us in the process! Pitiful and unforgivable conduct. The very opposite of all that Rafa represents.

      • Hi Ginagigi,

        I finally watched it and I was not as emotional as I thought I would be. Have you watched it yet? I also watched another video, ‘Rafael Nadal | Story of Unmatched Greatness’, which was narrated by his coach, Carlos Moya. I enjoyed it very much. It reminds me I drank 1/2 glass of champagne after I watched Rafa won his #10 RG trophy in person. I don’t like alcohol at all. (I also went the year prior, but Rafa withdrew with injury before I boarded my flight). We will miss Rafa for sure, but all those wonderful memories will be with us forever!

  3. What can I say, the BEST sportsman, athlete on and off the court has retired, and at least for me Tennis will never be the same without him. Enjoyed every bit of his games, victories and also his defeats, which were never assured until the last game. You have been an inspiration for me in many ways, I applied those same principles of integrity and intensity into my own career and life. Thank you Rafa, forever you will be in our hearts.

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  4. Thank you so much Rafa and owner of this page for great memories. After watching you achieving everything that was achievable my only wish to meet you one day and these amazing people here like Mimi, Mac and so many here. Love you Rafa once again and thank you for inspiring my life and many more.

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  5. It’s hard to know it’s over, I am really feeling sad. Just as for Rafa himself, my life will change after this retirement. No more waking up in the middle of the night to see him play, not seeing his smile again, the passion in his game. I, and millions of other people, will miss the greatness of this small kid from Mallorca, fulfilling his dreams. Rafa, I am so proud that you were my idol during all those years. Love you forever ❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️

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  6. I can’t quite believe that it’s over. He’s been such a big part of my life, for two decades. All the best in your retirement, Rafa, and please keep in touch with the tennis world. Thank you for all the wonderful memories. We love you! (Very impressed with David Beckham speaking in Spanish!)

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  7. My heart is broken and yet I knew this day would come. I have watched Rafa since his first match on TV. And, at the time I was a die hard Agassi fan but something special happened when Rafa walked onto that court. I have seen every single match he’s played. I live in Las Vegas and tennis rarely comes here. I had tickets finally to see him live at the Slam that didn’t happen. I have lived my life with days and nights reversed due to watching him live no matter where he was. In my time zone it usually meant 2-7am start times. I stayed up to watch today’s match live at 8:00am. And my heart went out to him.

    No other athlete will come close to you, Rafa. You embody class, humility, determination and insane talent.

    I have loved this website, too. There’s rarely a day I haven’t checked it. Thank you, team, for this site holding us all together.

    How will we watch tennis going forward knowing the excitement will never be the same? We all lost a friend we haven’t met today. I pray Rafa’s life going forward is all he wants.

    You are the GOAT, Rafa. And we thank you for the past 20+ years of Rafa JOY!

    Vamos, Rafa! ♥️🎾

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    • Dear Jill, thank you very much for your kind words and loyalty over the years. So sorry to hear that you haven’t been able to see any of Rafa’s matches live despite having tickets. But your positivity and love for Rafa have surely reached him through the universe and given him extra energy.

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  8. Well I watched all day, trying to will Spain on to a win, but it was just not to be! It was emotional right from the start – I noticed that Nadal’s eyes were getting moist when they were playing the Spanish anthem at the beginning, probably realizing it would be the last time he competed for Spain. And he certainly did he best in his match, as expected kept trying and fighting to the last point. He was cheering on the doubles match and when the Netherlands finally won, the camera zoomed in on him and you could see it was real sadness on his face, I’m guessing realizing that it was now really finished and it must have hurt. Leaving a game he clearly loves so much.

    And as usual he had more perspective than I did about it all (ha!). Most of the speeches were in Spanish, but it was clear that he had so much gratitude for his life, for his career, for the friends and family that surrounded him all these years, for the love he received from his fans!

    I’ve felt sad all day, maybe because it’s like I’m losing a friend. I know Rafa will still be around, but he’s like the friend I won’t be seeing anymore on a regular basis. He played, he competed and I watched and cheered him on for all these years. I got up at ridiculous hours (Australian Open for example) to watch him play. For me he is the greatest competitor I have ever seen and the greatest tennis player ever. And don’t even get me started on what a terrific human being he is and what a marvellous example he is to athletes everywhere. It won’t be the same for me without him in the game. Although I still enjoy the game, it’s like my heart just isn’t in it anymore. Thank you Rafa for all the endless hours watching you play, marvelling at your talent, trying to stay “calm” when you’d get behind and feeling complete euphoria when you’d pull off so many incredible victories! I hope you still hang around tennis abit in the coming years, so that I can see “my friend Rafa” from time to time!! ❤️❤️

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    • Dear TennisGirl, tears weren’t part of my plans today, but reading your beautifully written comment made me realize just how perfectly you described what Rafa means to so many fans around the world. Thank you for taking the time to write it! Hugs!

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  10. Not ready to watch yet…I didn’t cry watching Rafa play today, but I will for sure watching this tribute. I will wait a few days.

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