32 years old, former world no.1 a glorious past with 16 career titles, 3 Davis Cups.. and… time to retire.
About the last match with Almagro
Ferrero shed some tears during the standing ovation at the Agora Building in Valencia.
“This is a very special week, a very emotional week,” said Ferrero. “Today on court it was very emotional, but it’s been very emotional since the tournament started.
“There were two sides of the coin to playing against Nico,” he added
“When I first saw the draw, I was really not happy because he was one of the few players I didn’t want to play. We’re best friends, we practise together, and Nico is also trying to qualify for the Barclays ATP World Tour Finals. I was really not happy, but then, the nice side of it is that I played my last match against a very important person for me, a great friend.”
Davis Cup
It was a wonderful ride for Juan Carlos that kicked start ia series of Davis Cup triumphs for Spain. Ferrero was the key player to win the very first one to defeat Hewitt in the decisive match in 4 sets. (2003 Davis Cup)
Roland Garros Winner
In singles, the most important success was when he won the Roland Garros in 2003 defeating Verkerk in straight sets.
World no.1
Juan Carlos became world no.1 the 8th of September 2003 to remain in the top 50 for 13 consecutive years.
From Ferrero
“I’ve always been a very competitive person and a winner, and I felt like I didn’t have it within me anymore,” said Ferrero “It takes a lot to keep up with what the level is. I could probably still be around for some time, but because I’ve always been a perfectionist, I want to stop now.”
About his future
Ferrero will still be around as per his own words “There’s a good chance that I will be travelling with Nico to a few tournaments next year, maybe as a coach. It was nice to play my last match against him,”
Hasta la vista Juan Carlos!
