NEW YORK—It’s impossible to know what Rafael Nadal, who today announced he’ll miss his long-scheduled participation in Laver Cup, is thinking. Is he on the brink of retirement? Does he want to stretch his career out for one more appearance (maybe at the Davis Cup Final in Magala, Spain)? Does he want to play a fuller schedule in 2025, and experience the farewell tour he seemingly hoped for?
No one knows. But if anyone could guess with confidence, why not another Wimbledon champion from Spain, who just called it a career this year?
“I was so ready,” says Garbine Muguruza, who in April stepped away from the sport at age 30. “Life was sending me signals to me physically. I was just looking forward to that next chapter.”
More than ailments, though, the mental side of Muguruza led to her decision. She won the WTA Finals in 2021 and finished the season at a career-high No. 3. But she ended up playing her final match just over a year later, at a WTA 250 in Lyon. Not on Centre Court, where she twice lifted the Venus Rosewater Dish, nor in Madrid or a venue of similar prestige. So you never quite know.
Could we have already seen Nadal for the last time?
“He’s so ready,” Muguruza says when asked about Rafa’s future. “His body, his mind, just everything…
“It’s time to also enjoy his kid! I see him smiling all the time with his baby. I’m like, ‘Why are you on the court still? Go home, take the boat, go in Mallorca.’ I think he gave everything he had.”
Whether or not Nadal continues playing, it’s a safe bet he’ll remain busy. Much like Muguruza. She arrived in New York City fresh off a trip to Monterrey, Mexico, where she supported the WTA’s Abierto GNP Seguros. (Fun fact: this year’s Monterrey champion, Linda Noskova, was Muguruza’s final opponent.) She participated in a legends exhibition in Arthur Ashe Stadium. She practiced with rising star Mirra Andreeva. She shot content for Tennis Channel Spain. And on the first day of the US Open, she helped open the NASDAQ market by ringing the bell in Times Square.