'I have left a legacy': Emotional Rafa retires

Tennis legend tearfully calls it quits at the Davis Cup after he loses final singles match and sees Spain eliminated

Rafael Nadal bit his lower lip and his reddened eyes welled with tears as he stood alongside his Davis Cup teammates for Spain's national anthem in Malaga, Spain, Tuesday before what he — and everyone — knew might be the last match of his career.

Hours after Nadal's 6-4, 6-4 loss to Botic van de Zandschulp of the Netherlands was over, the evening did turn out to represent the 22-time Grand Slam champion's farewell to professional tennis, because, just after midnight, the Dutch eliminated the Spaniards in the quarterfinals.

And it was during an on-court, post-match ceremony to honor Nadal that he cried and cried, at the singsong chorus of "Raaa-faaa" from the spectators, at the video showing highlights from his more than two decades on tour and the collection of recorded tributes from current or former players such as his "Big Three" rivals Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic, Serena Williams, Conchita Martinez and Andy Murray, and stars from other sports such as golf's Sergio Garcia or soccer's David Beckham.