Rory McIlroy sends emotional tribute to retiring legend

Rory McIlroy has paid tribute to retiring tennis legend Rafael Nadal. 

The 38-year-old’s competitive career, which yielded 92 victories including 22 grand slams over three decades, came to an end on Tuesday when Spain were knocked out of the Davis Cup by the Netherlands.

His number of major wins is topped only by Novak Djokovic on 24, while his record-annihilating run at the French Open will likely never be bested.

His retirement led to an outpouring of emotion from his fellow sports stars, including long-time rival Roger Federer, Andy Murray, Serena Williams and Nike stablemate McIlroy.

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“Rafa,” McIlroy wrote on his Instagram immediately following Spain’s elimination from the competition. “From watching you win your first grand slam in 2005 to watching you win your last in 2022, you have been a hero of mine and an inspiration to how I approach my own career. You will be so missed and tennis won’t be the same without you.

“Congratulations on one of the finest sporting careers of all time. See you on the course soon!

“Your friend, Rory.”

McIlroy also shared Nike’s tribute to the King of Clay.

The pair’s friendship dates back to 2010, when the pair met at an event in New York.

The following year, McIlroy was at Wimbledon to watch Nadal lose to Djokovic in the final shortly before heading down the road for that year’s Open at Royal St George’s. McIlroy, of course, had just experienced a roller coaster few months, having collapsed so dramatically at the Masters before that sensational eight-shot rout at the US Open to break his major duck.

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Nadal, at the time, revealed they had chatted for “half an hour in the locker room”.

“I love golf,” he added. “I follow almost every week, the tour. Seriously, I love watching Rory.

“He has probably one of the nicest swings in the world, if not the nicest. Seriously, it’s fantastic to watch him.

“He had a very tough fourth round of Augusta this year, and he deserves to win a major because, in my opinion, right now he’s playing at a different level than the rest.

“So, for sure, [he] is an inspiration. I admire him a lot.”

Now retired, Nadal, who plays off scratch, can concentrate more on his own swing. Earlier this year, he captured his first golf title at the Balearic Mid-Amateur Championship by a whopping seven shots in his native Mallorca.

Alex Perry is the Associate Editor of bunkered. A journalist for more than 20 years, he has been a golf industry stalwart for the majority of his career and, in a five-year spell at ESPN, covered every sporting event you can think of. He completed his own Grand Slam at the 2023 Masters, having fallen in love with the sport at his hometown club of Okehampton and on the links of nearby Bude & North Cornwall.

Associate Editor