‘Unforgettable’: Nadal in tears as Big Four reunited in moving French Open tribute
Rafael Nadal was brought to tears as he was reunited with his old rivals and immortalised on the clay of French Open’s Roland Garros.
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The King of Clay stood shyly in front of his subjects and peers in Paris on Sunday, sobbing with humility as he was celebrated for his greatness and decency.
As his emotions overflowed, Rafael Nadal had a capacity crowd in Philippe Chatrier Stadium chanting his name for one last time on what he later described as the perfect day.
It is the day Nadal’s name and footprint was permanently enshrined on the world’s most famous clay court, with the Spaniard receiving an extended standing ovation in a moving ceremony lasting almost an hour.
“It has been unforgettable,” he said.
“There are plenty of emotions for a guy like me that, you know, I don’t love these kind of things because I’m still a little bit shy for all this stuff. I don’t like a lot to be the centre of attention for these things.
“It was enough when I was playing tennis. But I enjoyed it, honestly. I suffered a little bit with the emotions, but I enjoyed a lot. It was amazing.”
2005. 2006. 2007. 2008. 2010. 2011. 2012. 2013. 2014. 2017. 2018. 2019. 2020. 2022.
Fourteen French Open titles claimed at a time when the giants of the sport roamed the baselines. It stands as one of sports greatest achievements, a feat likely to stand forever.
And it is why this Spaniard has become adored in France. That in itself is a remarkable feat given the rivalry between the nations.
Last August he featured in the Paris Olympics in a prominent role and said how much it meant to him to receive the Torch from Zinedine Zidane. To become the first player to have his name cemented on the most important court in his career furthered his gratitude.
🚨 HISTORIQUE !
— FRENCHRAPUS 🇺🇸 (@FrenchRapUS) May 25, 2025
La légende du tennis Rafael Nadal fait ses adieux à Rolland Garros aujourd’hui en larmes 💔
Les frissons.. pic.twitter.com/AQPrrMcuMp
Fittingly given his career is entwined with Roger Federer, Novak Djokovic and Andy Murray — all of them superb clay court players, which underlines the greatness of Nadal’s deeds in Paris — the other members of the Big Four joined him on centre stage.
They shared celebrated rivalries, matches that lasted beyond six hours, battles that left them broken in body and emotionally bereft on the biggest stages in tennis. One rode the highest of highs as the other endured the misery that comes with a loss in a major final.
But those battles bore friendship and respect, as evidenced again when the most famous band in tennis reformed for Nadal’s last hurrah. And what a hurrah it proved.
“We showed the world that we can fight as hard as possible but in a good way, being good colleagues, and respect each other very well,” Nadal said.
Rafa on having his footprint on Chatrier forever:
— Bastien Fachan (@BastienFachan) May 25, 2025
'I thought it would be for today or for the duration of this year's tournament, but when they told me it would be forever, I can't describe the emotions I felt' pic.twitter.com/wBEWMDWlHN
“I think I always say the same, because we were four of the best rivals. In some ways, when you are only two, you can lose a little bit the motivation ... because the other starts losing or gets injured.
“But being four, you never had to imagine, because always one of that four was winning the tournament. So that, to put it in perspective, never allowed us to stay relaxed or to give us the break in terms of intensity, in terms of the determination of keep improving our game.
“So I think within us, we showed us the way to follow and to be better and better. We achieved our dreams. And probably because of that kind of rivalry, we raised the numbers of the history of tennis to the next level. And that helps to the next generations to try to improve them. And I’m sure that’s going to happen.”
L'empreinte du pied de Rafael Nadal restera sur le Court Philippe-Chatrier pour TOUJOURS. 💛🇪🇸#RolandGarrospic.twitter.com/tmQJjxQ4Y4
— Univers Tennis 🎾 (@UniversTennis) May 25, 2025
As the four bid farewell to each other on the court, they broke out with laughter. It turned out Nadal had landed one last jab after stewing on something for a while.
In a press conference later, he explained that he had received a message from Andy Murray shortly after Arsenal had defeated Real Madrid in the Champions Trophy recently.
He had not heard from the Scot for a while, but the phone buzzed shortly after the conclusion of the match. To deliver the punch line, Nadal reached into his coat to read out the message.
“Hey, Rafa, haven’t spoken to you in a while. Just checking in to make sure you are okay,” the text from Murray read.
What a nice guy, Nadal reflected for a moment. And then it struck him. The Scot was being a smartarse.
“So honestly, (it) took me like five seconds to realise what I was reading, because at the beginning, I said, ‘Okay, he’s such a nice guy. He’s asking about how I’m doing, (my) family’” Nadal said.
“(But) after five seconds, I said, ‘This always British sense of humour’. By the way, I didn’t text him back when PSG beat Arsenal.” .
The Big Four were not the only ones to bid him farewell from tennis, but not goodbye, on Sunday.
In a beautiful touch, the ceremony featured the unrecognised faces, those from behind the scenes, the people who run the accreditation and transport and practice desks, among others.
Their presence set Rafa off in tears again and he thanked each of them in person. And it is excellent that the French Federation recognised this element of Nadal’s persona.
Nadal is renowned around the world for his personal touch, for recognising that there is more to sport than simply those on centre state, that the volunteers and administrative staff and others are working hard and deserving of respect. He was loved in tournament corridors.
“The results are results and of course I will be remembered for what I did on court. That’s going to stay there without a doubt,” he said.
“To the bigger audience you can, in some way, lie, but you can’t lie to the people who are next to you every single day. I don’t talk about family (because they) at the end are family.
“I say (this) about the team ... about people who work behind the scenes. They are able to see you every single day, (to see) how you react, how you are after losing, after winning, how you behave during all these moments. The drivers. The ball kids.
“At the end, I want to be remembered as a guy that people are happy when I come back to the places to see me again. That’s the important thing. When you are retired, when you don’t go to the places for a while, if you feel that the people who are working and behind the scenes, they know how you are in real life, these people want to see you again and are happy to see you again.”
Nadal has not struck a ball in anger for eight months. Indeed, he said one of the things that has surprised him the most in retirement is that his competitive spirit has deserted him. And that unsettled him until he recently regained his competitive bite.
“I tell you something funny. When I retired, for the next few months I lost all my competitive spirit. That’s the truth. I don’t know why,” he said.
“But I was playing golf or anything else and I didn’t care if I lose, if I win, if I play well, if I play bad. (It was) a strange feeling for me and not funny. I didn’t like to experience that, being honest, because I understand the sport in other way.
“But that’s past. I am competitive again. Just to let you know, I am enjoying my daily competitions when I play golf and when I do things, but I think in a much nicer way.”
What happens now?
American journalist Christopher Clarey has written a superb book titled The Warrior about Nadal, which entwines the Spaniard’s remarkable career with tales of Roland Garros and French culture.
The insights are many, varied and superb. Jim Courier, for example, was moved to tears when describing what it was like to witness the 22-grand slam champion’s ascension to greatness.
Clarey suspects it is possible Nadal, who has an enormously successful tennis academy among his business interests, will one day coach.
He also believes it is possible Nadal might one day become the President of Real Madrid. Given his prowess in sport and business, along with his passion for football, it is far from an absurd proposition.
“My sense is these guys have such big brands and they built up such big business empires that they’re going to be very visible,” Clarey told foxsports.com.au.
“I think Roger has been quite visible since he retired, and I think Rafa is probably taking some cues from that. And they have got the academies in many different places, with more to come. I think he has got restaurants. And he has got his connections to his longtime sponsors, so they’re not going to pull a Pete Sampras and go off and hide, which was great for Pete because it matches his personality,
“And Real Madrid President? I don’t think that is a joke at all. I think he would be a great fit. Honestly, I remember interviewing him when he was in his teens, and he was like, ‘tennis is great, but I wanted to be a soccer player, a football player.’”
Nadal, who cradled his son Rafael Jnr in his arms as he left the court following one last lap of honour, said on court the Big Four had a responsibility to go continue to do well by their sport in the future.
“In terms of business, all this stuff, I am probably (going to) have my motivation to grow things, to develop things and to learn about these things,” he said.
“Because at the end, I was a tennis player (and) because of that I was able to get some experience about different facets in life. But I need to learn a lot of things now. I am in this process and I am excited about learning and improving from the best.”
Originally published as ‘Unforgettable’: Nadal in tears as Big Four reunited in moving French Open tribute
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