 "Rafael Nadal finishes his tennis career with a record number of French Open titles. Reuters")
On Thursday, Rafael Nadal announced his retirement from tennis, confirming that the Davis Cup Finals in Malaga in November would be the last time he would walk out to the tennis court. Nadal had been battling injuries in the last couple of years, but apart from that, the Spaniard has enjoyed a remarkable career spanning 22 years. He has won 22 Grand Slam titles, which is more than Roger Federer’s 20 Grand Slams but second best to Novak Djokovic’s 24 Grand Slams.
The King of Clay has achieved several records and milestones throughout his career. The former World No 1 is the only player to have won 14 French Open titles, and the youngest to win a career Grand Slam. Nadal also has two Olympic gold medals (One in singles and one in doubles) in his trophy cabinet. Let’s now take a look at the top 10 moments from the 38-year-old’s career:
Creating history at Davis Cup
When he defeated Andy Roddick of the United States of America in the 2004 Davis Cup final, he became the youngest ever to win a game of a singles match in the summit clash of the Davis Cup, Nadal was only 18 years old at the time. This was a home Davis Cup victory for Rafael Nadal and his Spanish side, as they beat USA 3-2 in Seville.
Record number of French Open titles
Ever since his early playing days, Nadal dominated the clay courts, no matter which tournament he played. He, however, had a special love affair with the French Open, having won 14 titles at Roland Garros, the most by any player, male or female.
His first title win in Paris came in 2005 and kept defending his title till 2008. The 2005 French Open victory was also Nadal’s maiden Grand Slam title. Nadal would go on to win five back-to-back titles between 2010 and 2014, and despite falling short in the next couple of years, he would dominate again, winning back-to-back titles between 2017 and 2020. The legendary Bjorn Borg was the only other player to have won four consecutive French Open titles. Nadal’s 14th and last French Open title was in 2022.
Nadal vs Federer rivalry
The Rafael Nadal vs Roger Federer rivalry was one of the most talked-about rivalries in world tennis. In the 40 matches these two legends played, Nadal had a superior win-loss ratio of 24-16 against the Swiss.
Nadal and Federer faced off for the first-ever time at the 2004 Miami Masters. Nadal was just 17 years old at that time and beat Federer 6-3, 6-3 in a contest that went for 70 minutes.
One of the all-time epic encounters came during the final of the 2008 Wimbledon, which several people consider the greatest tennis match to have been played. Nadal emerged victorious, beating Federer 6-4, 6-4, 6-7 (5-7), 6-7 (8-10), 9-7 in a match that went for almost five hours. This was Nadal’s first Wimbledon title, and he would follow it up with another Wimbledon title in 2010.
Nadal creates history with career Golden Slam
Nadal endured an inconsistent start to the 2010 season, going down in the quarter-finals of the Australian Open. However, he went on to win both the French Open and Wimbledon titles that summer. He wrapped up the year with his first US Open victory, getting the better of Novak Djokovic in the final.
In 2008, Nadal won both the Wimbledon and French Open titles, along with an Olympics gold in Beijing. In 2009, he added an Australian Open title after he beat Federer in the final. The US Open was the only Grand Slam title missing from his trophy cabinet, and Nadal defeated Djokovic in 2010 to emerge victorious at Flushing Meadows. He became only the second man, after Andre Agassi to win the career Golden Slam in men’s singles. To add context, a career Golden Slam is when a player wins all four Grand Slams, along with an Olympic gold.
Winning the Olympic gold in 2008
Nadal had one of the best moments of his career when he won the Olympic gold medal in men’s singles in Beijing, 16 years ago. Nadal defeated Fernando Gonzalez of Chile 6-3, 7-6, 6-3 as he clinched gold at the Beijing Olympics in 2008.
Eight years later, would team up with Marc Lopez to beat Florian Mergia and Horia Tecau of Romania to clinch men’s doubles gold at the 2016 Rio Olympics.
The Big Three of tennis
For a long time, the Big Three of men’s tennis —Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, and Novak Djokovic dominated the sport. The competition intensified at the 2020 French Open when Nadal clinched his 20th Grand Slam title to equal Roger Federer’s feat. Nadal then surged ahead with his title win at the 2022 Australian Open. However, he soon lost that lead to Djokovic, with the Serb winning the 2022 Wimbledon, the 2023 Australian Open, the 2023 French Open, and the 2023 US Open, the last of which was Djokovic’s 24th Grand Slam title.