PARIS—Rafael Nadal stepped out into Court Philippe-Chatrier on Sunday to the sort of unending adulation, thunderous applause and chants of his nickname, “Rafa,” that greeted him for years as he accumulated a record 14 French Open championships, only this time he was being honored at a farewell ceremony.
Thousands of spectators gave Nadal, who retired last year, a standing ovation as he strode through the doorway that leads from the locker room to the playing surface he ruled like no one ever has in the history of tennis. Instead of that familiar headband or the tape on his fingers or the capri pants he made famous early in his career, Nadal was wearing a dark suit and dark dress shirt.
