Taylor Fritz left scratching his head about why Rafael Nadal did not choose to retire at French Open or Madrid Open
Taylor Fritz was surprised by Rafael Nadal's decision to retire after the Davis Cup Finals. The American had expected the tennis legend to announce his retirement at the French Open or another clay court event, where Nadal has been dominant throughout his career.
In a press conference, after his impressive 6-3, 6-4 win over David Goffin in the quarterfinals of the Shanghai Masters, Fritz was asked about his views on Nadal's retirement. The American said many expected the retirement announcement, but he was surprised by the timing.
"Yeah, I think a lot of people saw a retirement announcement coming. I think I was very surprised to see it's at Davis Cup, you know. I think a lot of people would have expected French Open, or Madrid, Barcelona, something like that," Taylor Fritz said.
Nadal has won the French Open a record 14 times, the Madrid Open a record five times, and the Barcelona Open a record 12 times. His clay court dominance was evident in his records at these events.
"Obviously he's tried for a long time to get healthy, and, you know, I think the announcement coming now, and the retirement coming at Davis Cup just shows he's tried for a very long time to play, and this is going to be it," Fritz added.
Fritz and Nadal have had some strong battles. The 26-year-old said he was fortunate to play them.
"Rafael Nadal is someone that I grew up watching" - Taylor Fritz pays tribute to the Spaniard
During the same press conference, Taylor Fritz said he was fortunate to play against Rafael Nadal when he was close to full health.
"Yeah, I was very fortunate to get to, you know, play Rafa a couple times, kind of in his last full year of playing healthy, and, I mean, I guess not fully healthy, but his last full year of playing a relatively solid schedule," Taylor Fritz said.
Nadal and Fritz faced off four times with their head-to-head tied at 2-2. One of their most highly contested and significant battles came at Wimbledon in 2022. Nadal won that quarterfinal match 3-6, 7-5, 3-6, 7-5, 7-6(4).
"Rafa is someone that I grew up watching, you know, him and Roger [Federer] dominate the sport, and it's been an honor to be able to be playing in the same time as someone who I watched on TV as a little kid. So, it's been, you know, it's been, like I said, an honor to be able to get to play him, and, yeah, it's the end of an era," Fritz said.
Fritz will now take on Novak Djokovic in the semifinal of the Shanghai Masters on Saturday, October 11. Meanwhile, Nadal continues to prepare for the Davis Cup Finals scheduled for November.