Rafael Nadal, one of the greatest men’s tennis players of all time, retired from the sport after participating in the 2024 Davis Cup Finals.
The event took place in Malaga in Nadal’s native Spain, but unfortunately, there wasn’t a fairytale ending to an all-time elite sporting career.
Spain lost their quarterfinal 2-1 to the Netherlands, with Nadal’s opening rubber vs. Botic van de Zandschulp, a straight-sets defeat, proving to be Rafa’s last match.
Italy, winners in 2023, successfully defended their title as Jannik Sinner ended a remarkable year with another title.
Which countries were in the 2024 Davis Cup Finals?
The below nations qualified for the Finals in 2024.
- Italy (defending champions)
- Spain (hosts)
- United States
- Canada
- Netherlands
- Australia
- Germany
- Argentina
2024 Davis Cup Finals format: how it works
The eight countries were drawn into knockout brackets, with four quarterfinals set to determining two semifinals and, lastly, the 2024 final.
The quarter-finals were as follows:
- Spain vs. Netherlands
- Canada vs. Germany
- United States vs. Australia
- Italy vs. Argentina
All QF, SF and final matches took place on indoor hard courts at the Martin Carpena Arena in Malaga.
Each match was decided by the best of three “rubbers”, with “rubber” meaning an individual tennis contest between either two singles competitors or two doubles pairs.
Within each match, there were two singles rubbers and one doubles rubber.
2024 Davis Cup Finals schedule, confirmed rubber match-ups, scores
Tie-break scores are in brackets.
Nov. 19: Netherlands 2-1 Spain (quarterfinal)
- Van de Zandschulp def. Nadal 6-4 6-4
- Griekspoor def. by Alcaraz 7-6 (7-0) 6-3
- Van de Zandschulp/Haarhuis def. Granollers/Alcaraz 7-6 (7-4) 7-6 (7-3)
Nov. 20: Germany 2-0 Canada (quarterfinal)
- Altmaier def. Raonic 7-6 (7-5) 6-4
- Struff def. Strapovalov 4-6 7-5 7-6 (7-5)
Nov. 21: United States 1-2 Australia (quarterfinal)
- Shelton def. by Kokkinakis 1-6 6-4 6-7 (14-16)
- Fritz def. de Minaur 6-3 6-4
- Shelton/Paul def. by Thompson/Ebden 6-4 6-4
Nov. 21: Italy 2-1 Argentina (quarterfinal)
- Musetti def. by Cerundolo 6-4 6-1
- Sinner def. Baez 6-2 6-1
- Berrettini/Sinner def. Gonzalez/Molteni 6-4 7-5
Nov. 22: Netherlands 2-0 Germany (semifinal)
- Altmaier def. by Van de Zandschulp 6-4 6-7 (14-12) 6-3
- Struff def. by Griekspoor 6-7 (7-4), 7-5 6-4
Nov. 23: Australia 0-2 Italy (semifinal)
- Kokkinakis def. by Berrettini 6-7 (6-8) 6-3 7-5
- De Minaur def. by Sinner 6-3 6-4
Nov. 24: Italy 2-0 Netherlands (final)
- Berrettini def. Van de Zandschulp 6-4 6-2
- Sinner def. Griekspoor 7-6 (7-2) 6-2
Which players were at the 2024 Davis Cup Finals? Full roster list
| Nation | Players* | Captain** |
| Italy | Jannik Sinner, Lorenzo Musetti, Flavio Cobolli, Andrea Vavassori, Simeone Bolelli | Filippo Volandri |
| Spain | Carlos Alcarez, Pedro Martinez, Roberto Bautista Agut, Rafael Nadal, Marcel Granollers | David Ferrer |
| United States | Taylor Fritz, Tommy Paul, Ben Shelton, Rajeev Ram, Austin Krajicek | Bob Bryan |
| Canada | Denis Shapovalov, Gabriel Diallo, Alexis Galarneau, Milos Raonic, Vasek Pospisil | Frank Dancevic |
| Netherlands | Tallon Griekspoor, Botic van de Zandschulp, Jesper de Jong, Wesley Koolhof | Paul Haarhuis |
| Australia | Alexei Popyrin, Jordan Thompson, Thanasi Kokkinakis, Alex de Minaur, Matthew Ebden | Lleyton Hewitt |
| Germany | Jan-Lennard Struff, Daniel Altmaier, Yannick Hanfmann, Kevin Krawietz, Tim Putz | Michael Kohlmann |
| Argentina | Sebastian Baez, Francisco Cerundolo, Tomas Martin Etcheverry, Andres Molteni, Maximo Gonzalez | Guillermo Coria |
*Each nation selects a squad of players for the Finals, usually consisting of five men’s players. However, as demonstrated by the Netherlands this year, they may also select only four.
**Each squad is skippered by a non-competing captain, who is usually a retired former player. Notable names such as Lleyton Hewitt and Bob Bryan are among this year’s Finals captains.
