Rafael Nadal’s retirement ceremony was based on what he wanted, tennis officials say

MALAGA, Spain (AP) — Rafael Nadal’s relatively low-key retirement ceremony at the Davis Cup was defended by the head of the International Tennis Federation on Sunday as being dictated by the 22-time Grand Slam champion’s wishes.

“Rafa is an amazing player and has a legacy of tennis that he will leave behind, inspiring millions of players around the world to play tennis, to continue to play. We felt it was very important to listen to what Rafa wanted and how he wanted to be celebrated. That’s exactly what we did,” ITF President David Haggerty said at a closing news conference at the site of the Billie Jean King Cup and Davis Cup in southern Spain.

Read More: Rafael Nadal’s career ends in Malaga, as Wesley Koolhof extends his own in dramatic Davis Cup doubles win

“We took his lead, and we delivered on that,” Haggerty added. “People can have whatever opinions they want of whether it was right or not, but to me, the most important thing was we delivered a ceremony that was what Rafa wanted—and, being who he is, was a great evening, and it was much appreciated.”

Feliciano López, the former player who is the Davis Cup Finals tournament director, deflected a question about the way Nadal was feted after his team, Spain, was eliminated by the Netherlands in the quarterfinals Tuesday.

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“We should focus, all of us, on the fact that Rafa chose Davis Cup to be the final tournament of his career instead of keep talking about his farewell ceremony,” López said. “Honestly, we did our best.”

A video tribute was played, with highlight videos from Nadal’s career and recorded messages from such current or former players as Roger Federer, Novak Djokovic, Andy Murray and Serena Williams.

None of those contemporaries was on hand for the event.

Nadal's coach, former world No. 1 Carlos Moya described the ceremony as "tacky" in an interview with Spanish press, while Spain's Davis Cup captain, David Ferrer, criticized the evening for being "weak".

Future sites for Billie Jean King Cup and Davis Cup to be announced

Haggerty said the bidding process for future hosts of the Billie Jean King Cup and Davis Cup is in its “final stages,” with two or three candidates for each. It’s possible they could go to the same city or be split, as they usually are (this year’s women’s team competition was moved to Malaga only because of complications with its original place, Seville).

The ITF hopes to announce the winning city or cities on Dec. 2, when the draw is announced in London for 2025 Davis Cup qualifying matches.

“What drives it, the decision-making, will be a number of factors, but the most important factor is making sure that there is great visibility for the competition — that we continue to grow, strength to strength. So it’s not about money. I mean, that’s an important element, but it’s not the driving element,” Haggerty said. “The driving element is how do we continue to build the Davis Cup and the Billie Jean King Cup. That’s what drives our decision.”

Malaga hosted the Davis Cup Finals the past past two years and its contract allows for the possibility of remaining the site in 2025.

Haggerty said 65,000 fans attended this year, up from 60,000 last year, and 43% of the spectators in 2024 traveled to the event from another country.