Rafael Nadal received an emotional farewell ceremony on Court Philippe-Chatrier to celebrate his dominance at the French Open.
Nadal won the French Open 14 times, which is six more than the player with the second most titles in Paris.
The Spaniard made his final on-court appearance at the French Open last year before Nadal retired at the Davis Cup Finals in Malaga.
Having been unable to wave an official goodbye to the French Open crowd last year, the tournament planned a farewell ceremony for Nadal.
Iga Swiatek and Boris Becker both react after Rafael Nadal’s farewell ceremony
It was an emotional goodbye for Nadal in Paris, with the Mallorcan tearful as the Parisian crowd gave him a standing ovation.
There were many famous faces present for the occasion on day one of the 2025 tournament, including his greatest rivals Novak Djokovic, Roger Federer and Andy Murray all joining Nadal on court.
Reigning French Open champion Carlos Alcaraz was also watching his compatriot’s farewell from the seats of Court Philippe-Chatrier, sat just behind four-time winner Iga Swiatek.
Swiatek, who is openly a huge fan of Nadal’s and sometimes practices at his academy, sent a message to the former world number one on social media after his ceremony.
In this post on Instagram, Swiatek showcased pictures from the ceremony including a selfie with Alcaraz, as well as her hands full of tissues after admitting that she cried.
Swiatek wrote, “Your legacy will last forever @rafaelnadal (love heart emoji) #yesicried.”
She was not the only person who appears to have been touched by Nadal’s farewell, with six-time Grand Slam champion Boris Becker also taking to social media to reveal his emotions.
In a message on X (formerly known as Twitter), Becker wrote, “We all are crying….”
While she did not confess her emotions like Swiatek and Becker, former doubles number one Rennae Stubbs was full of praise for Nadal.
Stubbs said on X, “I love this champion so much. Always kind, always respectful, always a champion! @RafaelNadal”
Rafael Nadal says how he feels about his French Open farewell ceremony
There was some criticism for Nadal’s farewell at the Davis Cup last year, but that does not appear to be the case for his French Open ceremony.
Nadal himself has even taken to social media to thank the tournament for what they did for him.
The 22-time major winner wrote, ” Merci, @rolandgarros! I will never forget this amazing day!”
Nadal finished his career with 14 French Open titles, losing just four of his 116 matches on the iconic clay courts of Paris.
The three players to inflict those defeats were the aforementioned Djokovic (2), Robin Soderling and most recently Alexander Zverev.
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