Rafael Nadal

"Nadal" redirects here. For other people, see Nadal (surname).

Rafael Nadal

File:Rafael Nadal en 2024 (cropped).jpg Nadal in 2024
Full name	Rafael Nadal Parera
Country (sports)	Spain
Residence	Manacor, Mallorca, Spain
Born	(1986-06-03) 3 June 1986 Manacor, Mallorca, Spain
Height
Turned pro	2001
Retired	19 November 2024
Plays	Left-handed (two-handed backhand)
Prize money	US $134,946,100 (2nd all-time leader in earnings)
Official website	rafaelnadal.com
Singles
Career record	1080–228 (82.6%)
Career titles	92 (5th in the Open Era)
Highest ranking	No. 1 (18 August 2008)
Grand Slam Singles results
Australian Open	W (2009, 2022)
French Open	W (2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2022)
Wimbledon	W (2008, 2010)
US Open	W (2010, 2013, 2017, 2019)
Other tournaments
Tour Finals	F (2010, 2013)
Olympic Games	W (2008)
Doubles
Career record	142–77 (64.8%)
Career titles	11
Highest ranking	No. 26 (8 August 2005)
Grand Slam Doubles results
Australian Open	3R (2004, 2005)
Wimbledon	2R (2005)
US Open	SF (2004)
Other doubles tournaments
Olympic Games	W (2016)
Team competitions
Davis Cup	W (2004,2008, 2009, 2011, 2019)
Medal record Representing Spain Olympic Games 2008 Beijing Singles 2016 Rio de Janeiro Doubles

Rafael Nadal Parera (born 3 June 1986) is a Spanish former professional tennis player. He was ranked world No. 1 in singles by the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) for 209 weeks, and finished as the year-end No. 1 five times. Nadal won 22 Grand Slam men's singles titles, including a record 14 French Open titles. He won 92 ATP-level singles titles, including 36 Masters titles and an Olympic gold medal, with 63 of these on clay courts. Nadal is one of three men to complete the career Golden Slam in singles. His 81 consecutive wins on clay constitute the longest single-surface win streak in the Open Era.

For nearly two decades, Nadal was a leading figure in men's tennis, alongside Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic, collectively known as the Big Three. Early in his career, Nadal became one of the most successful teenagers in ATP Tour history, reaching No. 2 in the world and winning 16 titles before turning 20. As a teenager, he won the French Open and six Masters events, four of which, along with the French, were on clay. Nadal became the world No. 1 for the first time in 2008 after defeating Federer in a historic Wimbledon final, his first major victory off clay. He followed this with an Olympic singles gold at the 2008 Beijing Olympics. After defeating Djokovic in the 2010 US Open final, Nadal became the youngest man in the Open Era to achieve the Career Grand Slam at 24, and the first man to win majors on three different surfaces in the same year.

After two injury-plagued seasons, Nadal returned to the tour in 2013, reaching 14 finals, winning two majors and five Masters events including the US Open Series sweep (Summer Slam). He continued his dominance at the French Open, securing six titles, two US Open titles, an Australian Open title, and an Olympic doubles gold at the 2016 Rio Olympics with Marc López. Nadal surpassed his joint-record with Djokovic and Federer for the most Grand Slam men's singles titles at the 2022 Australian Open, and became one of four men in history to complete the double Career Grand Slam in singles. On November 19th 2024, Nadal retired from the sport after playing for Spain in the Davis Cup Finals.

As a left-handed player, one of Nadal's main strengths was his forehand, delivered with heavy topspin. He frequently ranked among the tour leaders in return games, return points, and break points won. Nadal has won the Stefan Edberg Sportsmanship Award five times and was the Laureus World Sportsman of the Year in 2011 and 2021. Time named Nadal one of the 100 most influential people in the world in 2022. Representing Spain, he won two Olympic gold medals, and led the nation to five Davis Cup titles. Nadal has also opened a tennis academy in Mallorca, and is an active philanthropist.

Early life

Rafael Nadal Parera was born on 3 June 1986 in Manacor, a town on the island of Mallorca in the Balearic Islands, Spain, to parents Ana María Parera Femenías and Sebastián Nadal Homar. His father is a businessman who owns an insurance company, a glass and window company, and a restaurant. His mother owned a perfume shop but gave it up to raise Nadal and his younger sister, María Isabel. One of his uncles, Miguel Ángel Nadal, is a retired professional footballer who played for RCD Mallorca, FC Barcelona and the Spanish national team. As a child, he idolized Ronaldo, and through his uncle was given access to the Barcelona team dressing room to have a photo taken with the Brazilian. Another uncle, tennis coach Toni Nadal, introduced him to tennis when he was three years old.

Nadal started to play tennis at the Manacor Tennis Club, where Toni worked as a coach, hitting his first few shots with his uncle. Nadal initially found tennis boring compared with football, which he often played on the streets of Manacor with his friends. He began to play tennis more consistently when he was five, and Toni quickly realized that his young nephew had both the passion and talent to be a serious player. Nadal often played tennis in a group, but Toni singled him out during sessions, shouting at him instead of the other kids, and making him pick up the balls and sweep the courts. In his 2011 autobiography, he admitted fearing Toni and dreading solo practice sessions with him. Nadal admitted he sometimes returned home from tennis lessons crying and spoke with his mother about what he was enduring. His father expressed concern too, but the family decided it was best for Nadal to continue training with his uncle.

At age 8, Nadal won an under-12 regional tennis championship while also being a promising football player. This victory inspired Toni to train Nadal more intensively. After studying Nadal's two-handed forehand, Toni encouraged him to play left-handed for a natural advantage on the tennis court. The transition was difficult for Nadal, but Toni helped him make the change, getting him to try it for just 20 minutes per day before gradually increasing that time until he fully adjusted himself to it.

Career

1997–2000: Juniors

Nadal won the Spanish junior championships in 1997 and 1998, beating Ricardo Villacorta and Marcel Granollers respectively. In 1998 he completed the double as a junior, winning the Spanish championship in doubles with his great friend Tomeu Salvá, beating Diáz and Granollers in the final. Nadal then reached the final of the U14 Spanish championship at the age of 12, a feat that remains unmatched, losing to Juan Sanchez de Luna in straight sets. In late 1998, Nadal won the season-ending U12 Junior Masters at Stuttgart, beating future world No. 5 Kevin Anderson in the final.

In February 1998, Nadal won the Open Super 12, an unofficial world championship for U12 players held in Auray. It was the first time that Nadal competed outside of Spain and he beat the 1997 winner Jamie Murray in the final. At the time, Nadal was still hesitating between football and tennis, partly because his uncle Miguel Ángel was preparing to compete in the 1998 FIFA World Cup with Spain, but in the end it was Auray who decided it. In a letter in French that he sent to the organizers in 2010, Nadal stated that winning this tournament helped him make the decision to "opt for tennis and try an international career". In 1998, when Nadal was runner-up in the U14 event Spanish championship, he was still playing football. Nadal's father insisted he choose between football and tennis to so his schoolwork wouldn't suffer, leading Nadal to quit football and focus on tennis.

In 1999, the 12-year-old Nadal was playing in the U14 circuit of the ETA Junior Tour, currently known as the Tennis Europe Junior Tour, winning the prestigious Tim Essonne, and finishing the year at No. 69. In 2000, Nadal dominated the U14 circuit, winning two prestigious trophies at Les Petits As in Tarbes, where he defeated local favourite Julien Gely in the final, and the European Junior Masters in Prato. On the same day he turned 14, Nadal won the Sport Goofy Trophy, held in Getxo, beating Granollers in the final. In July, Nadal finally won the U14 Spanish championships, beating his friend and training partner Tomeu Salvá in the final. He broke a finger on his left hand during the first round, but still won the tournament anyways despite gripping the racquet with his four good fingers, his pinkie dangling. As a member of the Spanish national team, Nadal won the 2000 ITF World Junior Championship for players under 14, winning his matches in both singles and doubles (paired with Marcel Granollers) in a 3–0 win over Russia. Nadal ended 2000 at No. 5 of the ETA rankings for U14s.

By the time Nadal was 14, he had made a name for himself in the Spanish junior circuit by winning multiple age group titles. Those achievements earned him a tennis scholarship in Barcelona, and the Spanish tennis federation requested that Nadal leave Mallorca and move to Barcelona to continue his tennis training. His family turned down this request, partly because they feared his education would suffer, but also because Toni said, "I don't want to believe that you have to go to America or other places to be a good athlete. You can do it from your home." Furthermore, Nadal already was by then practicing three times a week at Palma with his childhood idol and fellow Majorcan, the former World No. 1 Carlos Moyá, who later became Nadal's mentor and confidant, and whom Nadal beat in 2000, at the time still a Top-10 player, in an exhibition match. The decision to stay home meant less financial support from the federation; instead, Nadal's father covered the costs.

Rafael Nadal singles-ranking history chart through January 2020

Singles ranking composite history chart through January 2020 (Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic)

2001–2002: Start of professional career

Nadal turned professional at the beginning of 2001, at the age of 14. While most of his contemporaries were making their first steps on the ITF Junior Circuit, Nadal took a different approach and played just two events on the ITF junior Tour, both after turning 16 in 2002, reaching the semi-finals of the junior singles event at Wimbledon, and then helping Spain defeat the US in the final of the Junior Davis Cup in his second and final appearance on the ITF Junior Circuit. He thus posted a 9–1 career junior record in singles, 4–1 on grass and 5–0 on clay. He had a career-high juniors singles ranking of world No. 145, attained on 30 December 2002.

In early 2001, at age 14, Nadal began playing the qualifying draws of professional tournaments. In May 2001, he defeated former Grand Slam tournament champion Pat Cash in a clay-court exhibition match. Nadal made his pro debut in the main draw at the Futures in Madrid on 11 September 2001, wasting no less than 13 match points against Guillermo Platel-Varas in the opening round. A week later he received a wild card into the main draw of the Challenger in Seville, his first Challenger tournament, and he ousted world No. 751 Israel Matos Gil 6–4 6–4 to claim his first pro win and earn the first five ATP points of his career to become world No. 1002. At age 15, Nadal ended 2001 as the world No. 811.

In 2002, Nadal, then ranked No. 762, received a wild card to the ATP 250 event on his home island of Mallorca, where on 29 April, at 15 years and 10 months of age, Nadal won his first ATP match by defeating No. 81 Ramón Delgado, and became the ninth player in the Open Era to do so before the age of 16. He did not compete for two months as he studied for school exams, thus missing the junior French Open in June. At the Wimbledon junior event, he reached the semi-finals after defeating second seed Brian Dabul and eighth seed Philipp Petzschner, before losing to Lamine Ouahab. Nadal then won six of the nine Futures events he entered from July until December, including 5 on clay and 1 on hard courts, but he did not reach any doubles finals. Nadal finished 2002 with a Futures record of 40–9 in singles and 10–9 in doubles. In October, Nadal achieved his first victory over a top-100 player by defeating No. 76 Albert Montañés in the quarterfinals of a Challenger at Barcelona, before losing to Albert Portas in the semi-finals. Nadal ended 2002 as the world No. 199.

2003: First ATP title and ascending to the top 50

Nadal continued his ascent in early 2003, reaching the finals of Challengers at Hamburg, Cherbourg and Cagliari, and winning at Barletta. He scored a total of 19 Challenger wins in the first three months of the season to find himself inside the Top 150. He then qualified for his second career ATP event, the Monte Carlo Masters, where in the second round he beat the 2002 French Open champion Albert Costa, then ranked No. 7, thus getting his first top 10 career win and entering the world's top 100. Nadal reached his fifth Challenger final of the year in Aix-en-Provence, which he lost to Mariano Puerta. In May, the 16-year-old Nadal entered his second Masters event at Hamburg, where he upset No. 4 Carlos Moyá before losing to future French Open Champion Gaston Gaudio in the third round. Nadal was then forced to postpone his French Open debut after injuring his elbow in a fall while training. He then qualified directly to Wimbledon, thus having never contested in a major qualifying event before. In his major main draw debut in Wimbledon, Nadal defeated Mario Ančić, and reached the third round to became the youngest man to do so since Boris Becker in 1984.

In July, Nadal reached the first national final of his career at the Spanish Championship in Majadahonda, beating the champion and finalist of the previous edition, Tommy Robredo and Fernando Verdasco, before losing to Feliciano López. Nadal then participated at Umag, where he lost to Moyá in the semi-finals. This remained Nadal's only loss at a clay-court semi-final for the next 12 years, as he then began a streak of 52 consecutive wins in semi-final matches on clay that only ended at the 2015 Rio Open. Nadal also competed in seven doubles tournaments in 2003, and won his first ATP title (doubles or singles) at Umag, partnering Álex López Morón to defeat Todd Perry and Thomas Shimada in the final. Nadal won his second Challenger title of the year in August at Segovia, thus entering the top 50 and winning the ATP Newcomer of the Year Award.

At the US Open, Nadal lost in the second round to Younes El Aynaoui. In September, Nadal entered the final Challenger event of his career, on hard courts in Saint-Jean-de-Luz, retiring with an injury against Richard Gasquet, who never defeated Nadal again. Nadal then reached another national final in the Albacete Tournament after overcoming three match points and a headache in the semi-finals against Ferrán Ventura to set up another final with López, this time winning comfortably. Nadal finished the year ranked as the world No. 49.

2004: Davis Cup title

2004 started with a doubles title alongside Tommy Robredo at the Chennai Open, defeating Jonathan Erlich and Andy Ram in the final; Nadal's second doubles title and first on hard courts. In singles, however, Nadal piled up his 5th consecutive loss after a first round exit to Thierry Ascione; this remains the worst losing streak of his career. He bounced back in the next tournament in Auckland as he reached the first ATP final of his career, which he lost to Dominik Hrbatý. Nadal then reached the third round of the Australian Open, where he lost in straight sets to former world No. 1 Lleyton Hewitt. Later that year, ranked No. 34, Nadal faced No. 1 Roger Federer for the first time in the third round of the Miami Open, winning in straight sets before losing to Fernando González in the fourth round.

In the first tournament of the clay court season at Estoril, Nadal suffered a stress fracture in his left ankle during his round of 16 victory over Richard Gasquet, causing him to miss 3 months of play and 2 majors, the French Open and Wimbledon. On his return in July, he struggled to regain his form, and although he won his first ATP singles title at the Prokom Open by defeating No. 105 José Acasuso in the final, Nadal won hardly any other match on the tour. At the US Open, Nadal lost to defending champion Andy Roddick in the second round. In the doubles event partnering Robredo, they upset the No. 4 seeds in the third round and reached the semi-finals; Nadal's best performance in a grand slam doubles event.

In the 2004 Davis Cup final, the 18-year-old Nadal beat world No. 2 Andy Roddick on clay in Spain to help his nation clinch the title over the United States, and in doing so at 18 years and six months of age, he became the youngest player to register a singles victory in a Davis Cup final for a winning nation. Nadal finished the year ranked as the world No. 51, two places worse than the prior year, mainly because he missed most of the clay court season.

2005: First major title

Main article: 2005 Rafael Nadal tennis season

2005 started with a doubles title alongside Albert Costa at the Qatar Open, defeating Andrei Pavel and Mikhail Youzhny in the final. At the 2005 Australian Open, Nadal lost in the fourth round to eventual runner-up Lleyton Hewitt. Two months later, he reached the final of the 2005 Miami Masters, and despite being two points from a straight-sets victory, he was defeated in five sets by No. 1 Roger Federer.

He dominated the spring clay-court season. He won 24 consecutive singles matches, breaking Andre Agassi's Open Era record of consecutive match wins for a male teenager. Nadal won the Torneo Conde de Godó in Barcelona defeating the former world No. 1 Juan Carlos Ferrero in the final; which meant he was ranked in the top 10 for the first time in his career. He then beat 2004 French Open runner-up Guillermo Coria in the finals of the 2005 Monte Carlo Masters and the 2005 Italian Open. These victories raised his ranking to world No. 5 and made him one of the favorites at his career-first French Open. On his 19th birthday, Nadal defeated Federer in the French Open semi-finals, being one of only four players to defeat him that year (along with Marat Safin, Richard Gasquet, and David Nalbandian). Two days later he defeated Mariano Puerta in the final, becoming the second man, after Mats Wilander in 1982, to win the French Open on his first attempt. He also became the first male teenager to win a major singles title since Pete Sampras won the 1990 US Open at age 19. His ranking rose to No. 3.

Three days after his victory in Paris, Nadal's 24-match winning streak was snapped in the first round on grass at Halle, Germany, where he lost to No. 147 Alexander Waske, the second lowest-ranked defeat of his career. He then lost in the second round of 2005 Wimbledon to No. 69 Gilles Müller of Luxembourg. Nadal then played at the Copa del Rey de Tenis in Huelva, the oldest tournament in Spain on clay, beating Carlos Moyá in the final. Following his Wimbledon loss, Nadal won 16 consecutive matches and three consecutive tournaments, the Swedish Open, Stuttgart Open, and the Canada Masters, defeating Agassi in the final of the latter to win the first hardcourt title of his career and to bring his ranking to No. 2 on 25 July 2005, where he remained for the next three years behind Roger Federer. His winning streak ended in the first round of the Cincinnati Open at the hands of Tomáš Berdych. Nadal was seeded second at the 2005 US Open, but was upset in the third round by No. 49 James Blake in four sets.

In September, he defeated Coria in the final of the China Open in Beijing and won both of his Davis Cup matches against Italy. In October, he won his fourth Masters title of the year, coming back from two sets down to prevail against Ivan Ljubičić in the final of the 2005 Madrid Masters, his biggest indoor title to this day. A foot injury prevented him from competing in the year-ending Tennis Masters Cup.

Both Nadal and Federer won eleven singles titles and four Masters titles in 2005. Nadal broke Mats Wilander's previous teenage record of nine in 1983. Eight of Nadal's titles were on clay, and the remainder were on hard courts. Nadal won 79 matches, second only to Federer's 81. He earned the highest year-end ranking ever by a Spaniard and the ATP Most Improved Player of the Year award.

2006: Second French Open title

Main article: 2006 Rafael Nadal tennis season

Nadal missed the Australian Open because of a foot injury. In February, he lost in the semi-finals of the first tournament he played, the Open 13 tournament in Marseille. Two weeks later, he handed Roger Federer his first loss of the year in the final of the Dubai Open (in 2006, Nadal and Andy Murray were the only two men who defeated Federer), thus ending Federer's 56-match winning streak on hard courts. Nadal was then upset in the semi-finals of the Indian Wells Open by James Blake, and in the second round of the Miami Masters by Carlos Moyá, who thus ended Nadal's 22-match win streak over fellow Spanish players.

Nadal with the Coupe des Mousquetaires after winning the French Open in 2006.

On European clay, Nadal won all four tournaments he entered and 24 consecutive matches. He defeated Federer in the final of the Monte Carlo Masters in four sets and Tommy Robredo in the Barcelona final. Nadal won the Italian Open defeating Federer in a fifth-set tiebreaker in the final, after saving two match points and equaled Björn Borg's tally of 16 ATP titles won as a teenager. At five hours and five minutes, this was the longest match Federer and Nadal ever contested and it is considered to be where the Federer–Nadal rivalry began in earnest, with The New York Times comparing it to the Muhammad Ali–Joe Frazier rivalry in boxing. Nadal then broke Argentinian Guillermo Vilas's 29-year male record of 53 consecutive clay-court match victories by beating Robin Söderling in the first round of the French Open. Nadal went on to face Novak Djokovic in the quarterfinals, the first-ever meeting of their historic rivalry, which Nadal won via a retirement from Djokovic after Nadal took the first two sets. He then beat Ivan Ljubičić to set up a final against Federer. Nadal won the match on a fourth set tiebreaker to become the first player to defeat Federer in a Grand Slam final.

Nadal was seeded second at Wimbledon, and was two points from defeat against American qualifier Robert Kendrick in the second round before winning in five sets. In the third round, Nadal defeated No. 20 Andre Agassi in straight sets in Agassi's last ever match at Wimbledon. Nadal also won his next three matches in straight sets, to reach his first Wimbledon final. Nadal was the first Spanish man since Manuel Santana in 1966, to reach the Wimbledon final. Federer won the final in four sets to win his fourth consecutive Wimbledon title.

Nadal was upset in the third round of the Rogers Cup in Toronto and in the quarterfinals of the Cincinnati Open by Juan Carlos Ferrero. Nadal was seeded second at the US Open, but lost in the quarterfinals to No. 54 Mikhail Youzhny in four sets.

Nadal played only three tournaments for the remainder of the year. Joachim Johansson, ranked No. 690, upset Nadal in the second round of the Stockholm Open. The following week, Nadal lost to Tomáš Berdych in the quarterfinals of the Madrid Masters. During the round-robin stage of the year-ending Tennis Masters Cup, Nadal lost to James Blake but defeated Nikolay Davydenko and Robredo. Nadal qualified for the semi-finals, where he lost to Federer. This was Nadal's third loss in nine career matches with Federer.

Nadal went on to become the first player since Andre Agassi in 1994–95 to finish the year ranked No. 2 in consecutive years.

2007: Third French Open title

Main article: 2007 Rafael Nadal tennis season

At the Australian Open, Nadal lost in the quarterfinals to eventual runner-up Fernando González. After another quarterfinal loss at the Dubai Tennis Championships, he won the Indian Wells Open after beating Novak Djokovic in the final, before losing to Djokovic in the quarterfinals of the 2007 Miami Masters.

He won the titles at the Monte-Carlo Masters, the Torneo Godó in Barcelona, and the Italian Open, before losing to Roger Federer in the final of the Hamburg Masters. This defeat ended his 81-match winning streak on clay, which is the male Open Era record for consecutive wins on a single surface. He bounced back quickly in the French Open, not dropping a set en route to the final where he faced Federer once again, this time winning in four sets to join Björn Borg as the only men to win three French Open titles in a row. Between the tournaments in Barcelona and Rome, Nadal defeated Federer in the "Battle of Surfaces" exhibition match in Mallorca, with the tennis court being half grass and half clay.

Nadal was upset in the quarterfinals of the Artois Championships at Queen's Club in London for the second consecutive year. Nadal then won consecutive five-set matches during the third and fourth rounds of Wimbledon before being beaten by Federer in the five-set final. This was Federer's first five-set match at Wimbledon since 2001. In July, Nadal beat the unseeded Stan Wawrinka in the final of the clay-court Stuttgart Open. In the North American summer hard court season, Nadal was a semi-finalist at the Canadian Masters in Montreal before losing his first match at the Cincinnati Open. At 2007 US Open, seeded two, he was defeated in the fourth round by David Ferrer, and spent the tournament dealing with a knee injury.

After a month-long break, Nadal played Madrid Masters and Paris Masters, but David Nalbandian beat him in straight sets in the quarterfinals and final of those tournaments. Nadal won two of his three-round robin matches to advance to the semi-finals of the Tennis Masters Cup in Shanghai, where Federer defeated him in straight sets.

2008: Two majors, Olympic singles gold, and world No. 1

Main article: 2008 Rafael Nadal tennis season

Early in the year, Nadal reached the semi-finals of the Australian Open for the first time, losing in straight sets to Jo-Wilfried Tsonga. Nadal also reached the final of the Miami Masters for the second time, which he lost to Nikolay Davydenko.

At the Monte Carlo Masters, Nadal beat Federer in the final for the third year in a row to become the first player to win four consecutive titles there since Anthony Wilding in 1914. He also won the doubles event with Tommy Robredo, becoming the first player since Jim Courier in 1991 to win the singles and doubles titles at a Masters Series event. Nadal won his fourth consecutive title at Barcelona. Nadal won his first Masters Hamburg title defeating Federer in a three-set final, to become the third player to have won all three clay-court Masters Series titles, in Rome, Monte Carlo and Hamburg. He then won the French Open, becoming the fifth man in the Open Era to win a Grand Slam singles title without losing a set. He defeated Federer in the final for the third straight year, losing only four games, and gave Federer his first bagel since 1999. This was Nadal's fourth consecutive French title, tying Borg's all-time record. Nadal became the fourth male player during Open Era to win the same Grand Slam singles tournament for four consecutive years (the others being Borg, Pete Sampras, and Federer).

Nadal then played Federer in the final of Wimbledon for the third consecutive year, in the most anticipated match of their rivalry. Nadal entered the final on a 23-match winning streak, including his first career grass-court title at Queen's prior to Wimbledon, while Federer had won his record fifth grass-court title at the Halle, and then reached the Wimbledon final without losing a set. Unlike their previous two Wimbledon finals, Federer was not the prohibitive favorite, and many analysts picked Nadal to win. At 4 hours and 48 minutes, they played the longest final (in terms of time on court, surpassed in 2019) in Wimbledon history, and because of rain delays, Nadal won the fifth set 9–7 in near-darkness. The match was widely lauded as the greatest Wimbledon final ever, with some tennis critics even calling it the greatest match in tennis history.

By winning Wimbledon, Nadal became the third man in the Open Era to win both the French Open and Wimbledon in the same year, after Rod Laver in 1969, and Björn Borg in 1978–1980, as well as the second Spaniard to win Wimbledon after Manolo Santana in 1966. He also ended Federer's streak of five consecutive Wimbledon titles and 65 straight wins on grass courts.

Nadal extended his winning streak to a career-best 32 matches by winning his second Canada Masters title in Toronto, becoming the third youngest player to accumulate 30 titles behind Borg and Jimmy Connors, and then reaching the semi-finals of the Cincinnati Open, where his winning streak was snapped by Djokovic. Nadal then played at the Beijing Olympics, where he beat Novak Djokovic in the semi-finals and Fernando González in the final to win the gold medal. With the win, Nadal finally clinched the world No. 1 ranking on 18 August, ending Federer's record four-and-a-half-year reign at the top.

At the US Open, Nadal was the top seed for the first time at a major. He did not lose a set during his first three matches, but lost in the semi-finals to Andy Murray. Later in the year in Madrid, Nadal helped Spain defeat the United States in the Davis Cup semi-finals. At the Madrid Masters, Nadal lost in the semi-finals to Gilles Simon. However, his performance at the event guaranteed him the year-end No. 1 ranking, making him the first Spaniard to finish a season as such in the Open Era. At the Paris Masters, Nadal reached the quarterfinals, where he withdrew because of a knee injury. The following week, Nadal announced his withdrawal from the year-ending Tennis Masters Cup in Shanghai, citing tendinitis of the knee, thus ending his season.

2009: Australian Open and Davis Cup titles

Main article: 2009 Rafael Nadal tennis season

Nadal's first ATP Tour event for the season was the Qatar Open, where he lost in the quarterfinals to Gaël Monfils. Nadal also won the doubles event with Marc López, beating the No. 1-ranked Daniel Nestor and Nenad Zimonjić in the final. At the Australian Open, Nadal won his first five matches without dropping a set, before defeating Fernando Verdasco in the semi-finals in the fifth-longest match in Australian Open history at 5 hours and 14 minutes. Nadal defeated Federer in a five-set final (their first meeting in a hard-court major) to earn his first hard-court major singles title, and become the first Spaniard to win the Australian Open.

Nadal at the 2009 Australian Open

At Rotterdam, Nadal sustained a knee injury during the final, which he lost to Andy Murray. Although this knee problem was not associated with Nadal's right-knee tendonitis, it was serious enough to cause him to withdraw from the Dubai Championships a week later. In March, Nadal defeated Janko Tipsarević and Novak Djokovic to help Spain beat Serbia in a Davis Cup World Group first-round tie on clay in Benidorm, Spain. At the Indian Wells Open, Nadal won his 13th Masters tournament, defeating Andy Murray in the final in straight sets. At the Miami Masters, Nadal faced del Potro in the quarterfinals, losing the match.

Nadal began his European clay court season at the Monte Carlo Masters, where he defeated Djokovic in the final to win a record fifth consecutive singles title there. He then won back to back titles in Barcelona and Italian Open, defeating Ferrer and Djokovic respectively. In the semi-finals of the Madrid Open, Nadal saved three match points to defeat Djokovic in a deciding set tiebreaker to take his career record over Djokovic to 14–4 and his clay record since 2005 to 150–4. The match, at 4 hours and 3 minutes, was at the time the longest three-set singles match on the ATP Tour in the Open Era, and was voted as the best match in the history of the Madrid Open in 2022. Despite this, his exhaustion from his clash with Djokovic led Nadal to lose the final to Roger Federer. This was Nadal's first defeat on clay in 33 matches. This was the first time that Nadal had lost to Federer since the semi-finals of the 2007 Tennis Masters Cup.

By beating Marcos Daniel in the first round of the French Open, Nadal broke Björn Borg's 28-year male record of 28 consecutive victories at the French Open, and he then broke Chris Evert's overall record of 29 by beating Teymuraz Gabashvili in the second round. This run came to an end on 31 May 2009, when Nadal was upset by the eventual runner-up, Robin Söderling in the 4th round. This was Nadal's first loss at the French Open. The former three-time French Open champion Mats Wilander stated after the match that "Everybody's in a state of shock, I would think. At some point, Nadal was going to lose. But nobody expected it to happen today, and maybe not this year." Nadal withdrew from Queen's and Wimbledon due to suffering from tendinitis in both knees. Nadal dropped back to No. 2 behind Federer on 6 July 2009.

Nadal returned to the tour at the Rogers Cup in Montreal, where he lost in the quarterfinals to del Potro, meaning he dropped outside the top two for the first time since July 2005. Nadal then lost in the semi-finals of the Cincinnati Open, to Djokovic in straight sets. At the US Open Nadal lost in the semi-finals to eventual champion Juan Martín del Potro. At the ATP Finals, Nadal lost all three of his matches against Robin Söderling, Nikolay Davydenko, and Djokovic without winning a set. In December, Nadal participated in the second Davis Cup final of his career, defeating Tomáš Berdych in his first singles rubber. After Spain had secured its fourth Davis Cup victory, Nadal defeated Jan Hájek in the first Davis Cup dead rubber of his career.

Nadal finished the year as No. 2 for the fourth time in five years.

2010: Majors on all three surfaces, year-end No. 1, and Career Golden Slam

Main article: 2010 Rafael Nadal tennis season

Nadal began the year by defeating Robin Söderling in the final of the Capitala World Tennis Championship. In his first competitive tournament of the year, Nadal reached the final of the Qatar Open, losing to Nikolay Davydenko. At the Australian Open, Nadal reached the quarterfinals, where he retired at 3–0 down in the third set against Andy Murray.

Nadal reached the semi-finals of the Indian Wells Open and Miami Masters, losing to the eventual champions. Nadal then won the Monte-Carlo Masters, beating Fernando Verdasco in the final, 6–0, 6–1. It was his first title in 11 months, having lost only 14 games en route. With this win, Nadal became the first player in the Open Era to win the same tournament for six straight years. Nadal's next tournament was the Italian Open, where he defeated David Ferrer in the final for his fifth title at Rome. At the Madrid Masters, Nadal reached the final where he faced the defending champion Roger Federer in a rematch of the previous year's final, winning in straight sets to become the first man to complete a clean sweep of the three clay-court Masters 1000 titles and was his 18th Masters title, breaking Andre Agassi's all-time record (Federer was now two Masters title wins behind Nadal). He moved back to No. 2 in the rankings.

At the French Open, Nadal advanced to the final where he faced Söderling. He avenged the previous year's defeat by beating Söderling in straight sets to win his fifth French Open championship. This marked the second time that Nadal won the title without dropping a set. By winning the title, Nadal regained the world No. 1 ranking from Federer.

Nadal then entered the Aegon Championships, where his 24-match winning streak was snapped by compatriot Feliciano López in the quarterfinals. In Wimbledon, Nadal needed five sets to defeat Philipp Petzschner in the third round, receiving warnings and a $2,000 fine for coaching during the match. He then defeated Andy Murray in the semi-finals and Tomáš Berdych in the final to win his second Wimbledon title and his eighth career major title.

In Canada, Nadal lost in the semi-finals to Murray. Nadal also played the doubles with Djokovic in a one-time partnership, losing in the first round to Milos Raonic and Vasek Pospisil. Nadal was the top seed at the Cincinnati Open, losing in the quarterfinals to Marcos Baghdatis. At the 2010 US Open, Nadal reached his first final without dropping a set. In the final, he defeated Novak Djokovic in four sets to complete his first Career Grand Slam while also becoming the second male after Andre Agassi to complete a Career Golden Slam. He also became the first man to win majors on clay, grass, and hard courts in the same year, and the first to win the French Open, Wimbledon, and the US Open in the same year since Rod Laver in 1969. Nadal's victory also clinched him the year-end No. 1 ranking for 2010.

In Bangkok he was upset by Guillermo García-López in the semi-finals despite creating 26 break points. Nadal then won the Japan Open in Tokyo after saving two match points against Viktor Troicki in the semi-finals and then defeating Gaël Monfils in the final for his seventh title of the season. At Shanghai Masters, he lost to Jürgen Melzer in the third round. Nadal pulled out of the Paris Masters owing to tendinitis in his left shoulder. Nadal won the Stefan Edberg Sportsmanship Award for the first time. At the 2010 ATP Finals in London, Nadal won all of his round-robin matches for the first time in his career. In the semi-finals, he defeated Murray in three sets, before losing to Roger Federer in the final.

Nadal called 2010 his best year as a professional tennis player. Former world No. 1 Novak Djokovic, who lost to Nadal in the 2010 US Open final, stated that Nadal had "the capabilities already to become the best player ever", and added that "he has the game now for each surface, and he has won each major. He has proven to the world that he is the best in this moment".

2011: Sixth French Open title and Davis Cup crown

Main article: 2011 Rafael Nadal tennis season

Nadal started 2011 at the exhibition event Mubadala World Tennis Championship in Abu Dhabi, where he defeated Roger Federer in the final. At the Qatar Open, Nadal fell in straight sets to Nikolay Davydenko in the semi-finals but went on to win the doubles title alongside Marc López. In the quarterfinals of the Australian Open, Nadal suffered a hamstring injury against David Ferrer early in his quarterfinal match and lost in straight sets, thus ending his attempt to win four major tournaments in a row.

Nadal at the 2011 Australian Open.

In March, Nadal helped Spain defeat Belgium in a 2011 Davis Cup World Group first-round tie in the Spiroudome in Charleroi, Belgium. Nadal defeated Ruben Bemelmans and Olivier Rochus. At both the Indian Wells Open and the Miami Masters, Nadal reached the final and lost to Novak Djokovic in three sets.

Nadal began his clay-court season by winning the Monte-Carlo Masters with the loss of one set. In the final, he avenged his defeat by David Ferrer in the quarterfinals of the Australian Open. Just a week later, Nadal won his sixth Barcelona Open crown, again defeating Ferrer in straight sets. This was also the 31st clay court title of his career, thus breaking a tie that he jointly held with Björn Borg and Manuel Orantes for the third most clay titles in the Open Era. He then lost to Novak Djokovic in the finals of the Italian Open and Madrid Open, which ended his 37-match winning streak on clay. However, Nadal retained his No. 1 ranking during the clay-court season and won his sixth French Open title by defeating Roger Federer.

At Wimbledon, Nadal faced No. 2 Novak Djokovic in the final. Djokovic's victory in the semi-finals meant that he was going to replace Nadal as the world No. 1 at the end of the tournament, regardless of the result at the final, which Nadal lost in four sets. This was Nadal's first defeat at Wimbledon since the 2007 final and ended his 20-match winning streak there. After resting for a month from a foot injury sustained during Wimbledon, he contested the Canadian Open, where he lost a deciding set tiebreaker to No. 41 Ivan Dodig in the quarterfinals. At Cincinnati Open, he defeated Fernando Verdasco in a third round clash that lasted three hours and 38 minutes with three tiebreaks. This was the fifth time that Nadal played in a three tiebreak match, winning all five. In the quarterfinals, Nadal was hampered by burns to his right hand after an accident at a Japanese restaurant and lost to Mardy Fish in straight sets.

After defeating David Nalbandian in the fourth round of the US Open, Nadal collapsed in his post-match press conference because of severe cramps. Nadal then played Djokovic in their second successive major final, losing the match in four sets. Nadal reached the final of the Japan Open, where he was defeated by Andy Murray. At the Shanghai Masters, he was upset in the third round by No. 23 ranked Florian Mayer. At the ATP Finals, Nadal was defeated by Roger Federer and Jo-Wilfried Tsonga in the round-robin stage, and was subsequently eliminated from the tournament. In the Davis Cup final in December, he helped Spain win the title with victories over Juan Mónaco and Juan Martín del Potro.

2012: Seventh French Open title

Main article: 2012 Rafael Nadal tennis season

Nadal began his ATP Tour season at the Qatar Open, where he lost to Gaël Monfils in the semi-finals. At the Australian Open, Nadal won his semi-final match against Roger Federer to set up a third successive major final against Novak Djokovic, which he lost in a five-set epic that lasted 5 hours and 53 minutes, the longest Grand Slam final match (by duration) in history. It is considered to be one of the greatest tennis matches of all time. It was the longest match of both Nadal and Djokovic's careers, and was the only time that Nadal lost a major final after winning the first set. Nadal called it "the toughest loss in his career", but also "the best match he ever played".

Nadal then reached the semi-finals of both the Indian Wells Open, where he was beaten by Federer, and the Miami Masters, where he withdrew because of knee problems to risk no further injury given the Olympic-tightened 2012 schedule and the upcoming clay swing. At the Monte-Carlo Masters, Nadal did not lose a set en route to the title to become the first man in the Open Era to win the same tournament eight consecutive times. In the final, he defeated No. 1 Novak Djokovic to end a streak of seven straight final losses to him. This was the most lopsided of all their matches, as Nadal only lost four games. Nadal then beat David Ferrer in a three-set final to clinch his seventh title in eight years at the Barcelona Open. At the Madrid Open, Nadal surprisingly lost to Fernando Verdasco, whom he held a 13–0 record against. He criticized the new blue clay and threatened to skip future events if the surface wasn't changed back to red clay, a sentiment echoed by several players, including Novak Djokovic. His tremendous record on clay continued as he defeated Djokovic in a tight straight-set final at the Italian Open.

At the French Open, Nadal won his semi-final match against Ferrer to set up another final against Novak Djokovic. This marked only the second time in tennis history (after Serena and Venus Williams between the 2002 French Open and the 2003 Australian Open), two players played four consecutive major singles finals against each other. After winning, either Nadal would break Björn Borg's record of six French Open titles, or Djokovic would become the first man since Rod Laver in 1969 to win four majors in a row. After rain delays pushed the conclusion of the final into a second day, Nadal emerged victorious in four sets. Nadal became the most successful male player at the French Open with seven titles. Nadal lost a total of only three sets in the 2012 clay court season.

As a warm-up ahead of Wimbledon, Nadal played in Halle, losing to Philipp Kohlschreiber in the quarterfinals. At Wimbledon, Nadal was upset in the second round by Lukáš Rosol in five sets. This was the first time since the 2005 Wimbledon championships that Nadal failed to pass the second round of a Grand Slam.

In July 2012, Nadal withdrew from the 2012 Olympics due to tendinitis in his knee. He then withdrew from the rest of the 2012 season, as he felt he still was not healthy enough to compete. Nadal ended 2012 ranked No. 4 in the world, the first time in eight years that he was not ranked 1st or 2nd at the end of the year.

2013: Two majors and return to No. 1

Main article: 2013 Rafael Nadal tennis season

Nadal withdrew from Australian Open citing a stomach virus. Nadal's withdrawal saw him drop out of the ATP's Top Four for the first time since 2005. Playing in his first tournaments in South America since 2005, Nadal made his comeback at the VTR Open in Chile, where he was upset by Argentine No. 73 Horacio Zeballos in the final. At the Brasil Open, Nadal beat David Nalbandian in the final. In the title match of the Abierto Mexicano Telcel in Acapulco, Nadal defeated David Ferrer, losing just two games in the match.

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Nadal serving at the Indian Wells Open in 2013.

At the Indian Wells Open, seeded five, he lost only one set en route to the title, defeating No. 2 Roger Federer, No. 6 Tomáš Berdych and Juan Martín del Potro in the final. After withdrawing from Miami, Nadal was beaten by Djokovic in straight sets in Monte-Carlo Masters to end his eight-year reign at the tournament. He then won his eighth title at the Barcelona Open beating Nicolás Almagro in the final. Nadal went on to win the Madrid Open, beating Stan Wawrinka in the final. This was the 40th clay court title of his career, equal second in the Open Era with Thomas Muster. Nadal then overtook him when he defeated Federer for his 7th title at the Italian Open. These victories raised his ranking to No. 4.

Nadal won the French Open by defeating Novak Djokovic in the semi-final and David Ferrer in the final, breaking the record for the most match wins in the tournament with his 59th victory, surpassing the previous record held by Guillermo Vilas and Roger Federer. Nadal also became the first man in history to win any major eight times, and tied Roy Emerson for the third-most major titles in history. He also equaled Max Decugis, who won eight titles at this event before the Open Era. His semi-final match against Djokovic has been called one of the greatest clay court matches ever, with Nadal rallying from a break down in the fifth set to win after 4 hours and 37 minutes. This was only the second time Nadal had been pushed to five sets at the French Open (the first was against John Isner in the first round in 2011). This victory meant that since returning from seven months out due to a left knee injury, Nadal had reached eight consecutive finals, won 7 titles, and compiled a 43–2 record in 2013. However, Nadal then lost his first-round match at Wimbledon in straight sets to unseeded Belgian Steve Darcis, his first loss in the first round of a major. At the time, he was the lowest-ranked player ever to beat Nadal in a Grand Slam tournament.

In August, Nadal won a close semi-final match in Montreal against Djokovic and won the final over Milos Raonic in straight sets. He won his 26th Masters title in Cincinnati beating John Isner in the final. Nadal concluded his North American hard court season with his 4th hard court title of the year, defeating Djokovic in the US Open final in four sets to achieve the Summer Slam and clinch the US Open Series. He became only the third player in history, after Patrick Rafter and Andy Roddick, to win all three events in succession. This granted him $3.6 million in prize money, the most money earned by a male tennis player at a single tournament.

Later in September, Nadal helped Spain secure a Davis Cup World Group Playoff spot for 2014, with a victory against Sergiy Stakhovsky and a doubles win with Marc Lopez. In October, he reached the final of the China Open, helping him regain the No. 1 ranking. In the final, he was beaten by Djokovic in straight sets. At the Shanghai Masters, he lost in the semi-finals to Del Potro. In November, at the ATP Finals in London, he secured the year-end No. 1. He beat David Ferrer, Stan Wawrinka, and Tomáš Berdych in the round-robin stage to set up a semi-final victory over Roger Federer before losing in straight sets to Djokovic in the final.

2014: Ninth French Open title and sustained injuries

Main article: 2014 Rafael Nadal tennis season

Rafael Nadal began his 2014 season at the Qatar Open, winning the title after defeating Gaël Monfils in the final.

At the Australian Open, he defeated Roger Federer to reach his third Australian Open final. This marked Nadal's 11th consecutive victory in a major semi-final, second only to Borg's all-time record of 14. In the final, he faced Stanislas Wawrinka, against whom he entered the match with a 12–0 record. However, Nadal suffered a back injury during the warm-up, which progressively worsened as the match wore on. Nadal lost the first two sets, and although he won the third set, he lost the match in four sets. At the inaugural Rio Open he beat Alexandr Dolgopolov in the final. However, at the Indian Wells Open, Dolgopolov would avenge his loss, defeating Nadal in three sets in the third round. He reached the final of the Miami Masters, losing to Novak Djokovic in straight sets.

Nadal began his clay court season with a quarterfinal loss to David Ferrer in the Monte-Carlo Masters. He was stunned by Nicolas Almagro in the quarterfinals of the Barcelona Open. Nadal then won his 27th masters title at the Madrid Open after Kei Nishikori retired in the third set of the final. Nadal defeated Novak Djokovic in the Men's Singles French Open final to win his 9th French Open title and a 5th straight win. Nadal equaled Pete Sampras' total of 14 Grand Slam wins. Nadal then lost in the second round of the Halle Open to Dustin Brown.

At the Wimbledon Championships he was upset by Australian teenager Nick Kyrgios in four sets in the fourth round. Nadal withdrew from the American swing owing to a wrist injury. He made his return at the 2014 China Open but was defeated in the quarterfinals by Martin Klizan in three sets. At the 2014 Shanghai Rolex Masters, he was suffering from appendicitis. He lost his opening match to Feliciano Lopez in straight sets. Later, he was upset by Borna Ćorić at the quarterfinals of the 2014 Swiss Indoors. After the loss, he announced that he would skip the rest of the season to undergo surgery for his appendix.

2015: Continued struggles and rankings drop

Main article: 2015 Rafael Nadal tennis season

Nadal began the year as the defending Champion at the Qatar Open, but suffered a three set defeat to Michael Berrer in the first round. He won the doubles title with Juan Mónaco. At the Australian Open, Nadal lost in straight sets to Tomáš Berdych in the quarterfinal, thus ending a 17-match winning streak against the seventh-seeded Czech.

In February, Nadal lost in the semi-finals to Fabio Fognini at the Rio Open, before going on to win his 46th career clay-court title against Juan Mónaco at the Argentina Open. Nadal then participated at the Indian Wells and Miami Open but suffered early defeats to Milos Raonic and Fernando Verdasco, in the quarterfinals and third round respectively. Nadal then began his spring clay season at the Monte Carlo Masters and lost to Novak Djokovic in straight sets in the semi finals. After losing to Fognini in the Barcelona Open quarterfinals, Nadal lost in the final of Madrid Open to Andy Murray in straight sets, resulting in his dropping out of the top five for the first time since 2005. He then lost in the quarterfinals of the Italian Open to Stan Wawrinka in straight sets.

Nadal lost to Djokovic in the quarterfinals of the French Open, ending his winning streak of 39 consecutive victories in Paris since his 2009 defeat by Robin Söderling. Nadal went on to win the 2015 Mercedes Cup against Serbian Viktor Troicki, his first grass court title since he won at Wimbledon in 2010. He lost in the first round of the Aegon Championships to Alexandr Dolgopolov in three sets. Nadal's struggles continued when he lost in the second round of Wimbledon to Dustin Brown.

In the third round of the 2015 US Open, Nadal again lost to Fognini, despite an early two set lead. This early exit ended Nadal's record 10-year streak of winning at least one major.

2016: Olympic doubles gold medal

Main article: 2016 Rafael Nadal tennis season

Nadal started the year winning the Mubadala Title defeating Milos Raonic in straight sets. After that, he lost to Djokovic in straight sets in the final in Doha, Qatar. This was their 47th match, after which Djokovic led their head-to-head with 24 matches won. At the Australian Open, Nadal was defeated in five sets by compatriot Fernando Verdasco in the first round. The defeat marked his first opening round exit at the Australian Open.

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Nadal at the 2016 Rio Olympics.

In April he won his 28th Masters title in Monte Carlo. He won his 17th ATP 500 in Barcelona, winning the trophy for the ninth time in his career. At Madrid, he lost to Murray in the semi-final. At Italian Open he reached the quarterfinal. Nadal was again defeated by Djokovic in straight sets.

At the French Open, he became the eighth male player in tennis history to record 200 Grand Slam match wins in the second round of the Slam. Following the victory, Nadal had to withdraw from competition owing to a left wrist injury initially suffered during the Madrid Open, handing Marcel Granollers a walkover into the fourth round. The same wrist injury forced him to withdraw from the 2016 Wimbledon Championships. At the Rio 2016 Olympics, Nadal achieved 800 career wins with his quarterfinal victory over the Brazilian Thomaz Bellucci. Partnering Marc López, he won the gold medal in men's doubles event for Spain by defeating Romania's Florin Mergea and Horia Tecau in the finals. This made Nadal the second man in the Open Era to have won gold medals in both singles and doubles. Nadal also advanced to the bronze medal match in the men's singles but was defeated by Kei Nishikori.

At the US Open Nadal was seeded 4th and advanced to the fourth round but was defeated by 24th seed Lucas Pouille in 5 sets. The defeat meant that 2016 was the first year since 2004 in which Nadal had failed to reach a Grand Slam quarter-final. After losing in the second round of the Shanghai Masters, he ended his 2016 season.

2017: La Décima, third US Open title, and year-end No. 1

Main article: 2017 Rafael Nadal tennis season

Nadal opened his season by playing at the Brisbane International for the first time, where he lost to Milos Raonic in three sets in the quarterfinals. Nadal began the Australian Open with straight-set wins over Florian Mayer and Marcos Baghdatis, before more difficult wins over Alexander Zverev and Gaël Monfils, which set up his first quarterfinal berth at a Grand Slam since the 2015 French Open. Nadal defeated Raonic and Grigor Dimitrov in the quarterfinal and semi-final, respectively (the latter lasting for five sets over five hours), to set up a final against Roger Federer, his first Grand Slam final since he won the 2014 French Open. Nadal went on to lose to Federer in five sets; this was the first time that Nadal had lost to Federer in a Grand Slam since the final of the 2007 Wimbledon Championships.

Nadal reached the final of Acapulco without dropping a set, but was defeated by big-serving Sam Querrey. Nadal lost to Roger Federer in the fourth round at Indian Wells in straight sets; it was their earliest meeting in a tournament in over a decade. In the Miami Masters, Nadal reached the final to again play Federer, and was once again defeated in straight sets. Nadal then won his 29th Masters title in Monte Carlo; it was his tenth victory in the principality, the most wins by any player at a single tournament in the Open Era. Nadal won Barcelona without dropping a set, marking his tenth victory in Barcelona. At Madrid Open, he defeated Dominic Thiem to tie Novak Djokovic's all-time Masters record of 30 titles.

Nadal went on to beat Stan Wawrinka in straight sets and win a record tenth French Open title. This marked his first Grand Slam title since 2014. Nadal won every set that he played in the tournament, dropping a total of only 35 games in seven matches, which is the second-fewest by any male player (second only to Björn Borg's 32 dropped games at the 1978 French Open) en route to a major title in the Open Era. The title "La Décima" ("the tenth" in Spanish) was used to proclaim Nadal's achievement in becoming the first player to win 10 titles at a single major in the Open Era. Nadal also climbed to second on the all-time major singles titles list, with 15, placing him one ahead of Pete Sampras.

Nadal lost in the round of 16 at Wimbledon, 13–15 in the fifth set, to Gilles Müller.

By 21 August, he retook the ATP No. 1 ranking from Andy Murray. Nadal earned his third US Open title against Kevin Anderson, winning the final in straight sets. This marked the first time that Nadal had captured two Grand Slam tournaments in a year since 2013. Nadal extended his winning streak by winning the China Open, winning the final against Nick Kyrgios in straight sets. On 11 September 2017, Nadal and Garbiñe Muguruza made Spain the first country since the United States 14 years ago to simultaneously top both the ATP and the WTA rankings.

After defeating Hyeon Chung in the second round of the Paris Masters Nadal secured the year-end No. 1. He became year-end No. 1 for the fourth time in his career, tying him for fourth all-time with Novak Djokovic, Ivan Lendl and John McEnroe, behind Pete Sampras (6), and Roger Federer and Jimmy Connors (5). By securing the year-end no. 1 ranking, Nadal became the first player aged over 30 to finish as year-end No. 1 and the first to finish in the top spot four years since he last achieved the feat; he also broke a number of other historical records, all of which he broke again in 2019.

2018: 11th French Open and Monte Carlo titles

Main article: 2018 Rafael Nadal tennis season

Nadal began his 2018 season at the Kooyong Classic, where he lost to Richard Gasquet in the first round. At the Tie Break Tens exhibition tournament in Melbourne, he lost in the final to Tomáš Berdych. At the Australian Open, Nadal recorded straight-sets wins in the first three rounds, before notching a four-set win against Diego Schwartzman, but retired in the fifth set of his quarterfinal against Marin Čilić due to a hip injury.

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Nadal serving at the 2018 US Open.

On 16 February, Nadal dropped to the No. 2 ranking after 26 weeks at the top when Roger Federer overtook him. Nadal withdrew from the Mexican Open, Indian Wells Open, and Miami Open due to an injury. Despite his absence in Miami, he regained the No. 1 ranking on 2 April due to Federer's second-round loss. After recovering from injury, Nadal helped secure the Spanish Davis Cup team a victory over Germany in the quarterfinal of the World Group. He beat Philipp Kohlschreiber and Alexander Zverev in straight sets.

Nadal won his 11th Monte Carlo Masters title without losing a set (beating Kei Nishikori in the final) which was a then-record-breaking 31st Masters title, as well as the 76th title in his career. He kept his No. 1 ranking and began his 171st week as the world No. 1. He won his 11th title in Barcelona, beating Stefanos Tsitsipas in straight sets, becoming the first player in the Open Era to win 400 matches on both clay and hard. It was his 20th ATP 500 series title, which put him back atop the list of most ATP 500 titles, tied with Roger Federer. It also marked his 14th consecutive season with at least one ATP 500 title.

At Madrid, he reached the quarterfinals, defeating Gaël Monfils and Diego Schwartzman in straight sets, to extend his record to 50 consecutive sets won on clay, starting from the 2017 French Open. His win over Schwartzman broke John McEnroe's record of 49 straight sets won on a single surface. Nadal lost in straight sets to Dominic Thiem in the quarterfinals, ending his 21-match and record 50-set winning streaks on clay. Federer also overtook him as world No. 1.

At the Italian Open, Nadal captured his 8th title and 78th career title, defeating Alexander Zverev in three sets, thus overtaking John McEnroe in the fourth place on the list of most titles won in the Open Era. It was Nadal's 32nd Masters title – most of any player in the Open Era. With his victory in Rome, Nadal also regained the No. 1 spot from Federer.

At the French Open, Nadal won his 17th Grand Slam title. This tied Margaret Court's record for singles titles at a Grand Slam event (Court won 11 Australian Opens). En route to the title, Nadal dropped only one set, beating Dominic Thiem in the final in three sets. Nadal became the fourth man in the Open Era to win three or more major titles after turning 30.

At Wimbledon, Nadal was seeded second and made it to the quarterfinals without dropping a set. He then beat No. 5 seed Juan Martín del Potro in five sets. In the semi-finals he faced rival Novak Djokovic, who was aiming to win his first major since the 2016 US Open. The match lasted 5 hours and 17 minutes, spread over two days, the second-longest Wimbledon semi-final in history. Djokovic won in the fifth set 10–8. This was Nadal's first defeat in the semi-finals of a major since the 2009 US Open, and his first defeat in the semi-finals of Wimbledon. It was Nadals' best result at Wimbledon since 2011, and ensured that Nadal retained his number one ranking.

He then won the Rogers Cup, a record-extending 33rd Masters title. This was Nadal's first Masters title win on hard court since 2013. Nadal was the top seed during his title defence at the US Open. He first faced David Ferrer in Ferrer's last Grand Slam match, who retired due to injury during the second set. In his semi-final matchup against Juan Martin del Potro, Nadal retired after losing the second set 6–2 due to knee pain. He withdrew from the Paris Masters due to an abdominal injury and as a result Novak Djokovic replaced him as world No. 1.

2019: Fourth French-US title double, Davis Cup, and year-end No. 1

Main article: 2019 Rafael Nadal tennis season

After withdrawing from Brisbane International due to an injury, he was seeded second at the 2019 Australian Open, where he progressed to his fifth Australian Open final without losing a set. Nadal then lost in straight sets to Novak Djokovic, winning only eight games and marking Nadal's first straight-sets defeat in a major final. After losing in the second round of the Mexico Open to Nick Kyrgios, he withdrew from both Indian Wells and Miami due to a right hip injury.

Nadal began the clay season at the Monte Carlo Masters, losing in the semi-finals to Fabio Fognini in straight sets. At Barcelona, he lost to Dominic Thiem in straight sets in the semis. At Madrid, he lost to Stefanos Tsitsipas in three sets in the semi-finals. He won his first tournament of the year in Rome, with a three-set win over Djokovic in the final.

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Nadal at the 2019 ATP Finals in London.

At the French Open, Nadal defeated Kei Nishikori and Roger Federer (their first meeting at the tournament since 2011) en route to the final, dropping only one set en route. In a rematch of the previous year's final, Nadal won in four sets against Thiem to claim his record-extending twelfth French Open title. In doing so, he broke Margaret Court's all-time record of singles titles won at the same major.

Nadal next played at Wimbledon and reached the semi-finals, where he faced Federer for the first time at Wimbledon since the 2008 final. Nadal lost the match in four sets. At the Rogers Cup, by defeating Fabio Fognini in the quarterfinals, he surpassed Roger Federer's record of 378 victories at Masters tournaments. In the final, Nadal yielded just three games to Daniil Medvedev, winning in straight sets. This victory marked the first time he defended a title on a surface other than clay. At the US Open, Nadal lost only one set (against Marin Čilić) en route to the final, where he beat Medvedev in five sets to win his fourth US Open title and 19th major title overall (placing him only one behind Roger Federer in overall standings), and completed his second-best season in terms of Grand Slam singles results. At the Paris Masters, Nadal reached the semi-finals, but withdrew due to an abdominal injury.

At the ATP Finals, Nadal defeated Tsitsipas and Medvedev in the round-robin stage, but failed to progress to the semi-finals. Nadal secured the year-end No. 1 ranking when Djokovic was also eliminated in the round-robin stage. This was Nadal's fifth time as the year-end No. 1 player, drawing level with Jimmy Connors, Federer and Djokovic behind Pete Sampras (six), and in doing so, he surpassed a number of the records he set in 2017, becoming (at the time) the oldest person to finish as the year-end No. 1 player, and creating a record eleven-year gap between his first and last year-end No. 1 seasons (2008 and 2019, respectively).

At the 2019 Davis Cup Finals, Nadal helped Spain win its sixth Davis Cup title, defeating Canada in the final. Nadal won all eight of his matches in singles and doubles, extending his winning streak in Davis Cup singles matches to 29 (29–1 record overall), without dropping a set or having his serve broken; he also won the tournament's Most Valuable Player award.

2020: 13th French Open title

Main article: 2020 Rafael Nadal tennis season

Nadal began his 2020 season at the inaugural 2020 ATP Cup and helped Spain reach the final where they lost to Serbia, with Nadal losing to Djokovic in straight sets. At the 2020 Australian Open Nadal won his first three matches in straight sets against Hugo Dellien, Federico Delbonis and Pablo Carreño Busta. In the fourth round, he defeated Nick Kyrgios in four sets and lost in the quarterfinals to eventual runner-up Dominic Thiem in four sets. Nadal won his third Mexican Open title, defeating Taylor Fritz in straights sets in the final.

Nadal won his 13th French Open title, beating Novak Djokovic in straight sets in the tournament's final, only losing seven games. In doing so, he won his 20th Grand Slam title, equalling Roger Federer's record as the man with the most Grand Slam titles. It also marked his 100th win at the tournament, losing only twice in 16 years, and was the 4th time that he won a Grand Slam without losing a set, doing it also at the French Open in 2008, 2010 and 2017.

At the Paris Masters, Nadal defeated compatriot Feliciano López in the second round to get his 1,000 victory in the ATP Tour, becoming the fourth man in the Open Era to achieve that milestone. He lost in the semi-finals to Alexander Zverev in straight sets.

On 9 November 2020, Nadal reached his 790th back to back week as one of the ten highest placed players on the ATP rankings and surpassed the record held by Jimmy Connors.

At the 2020 ATP Finals, Nadal defeated Rublev and defending champion Tsitsipas progressing to the semi-finals and securing ending the year as no. 2. It was the first time since 2015 that Nadal reached the semi-finals. Nadal lost his semi-final match to eventual champion Daniil Medvedev in three sets. This was the seventh time that Nadal had finished Year-end No. 2 and now leads the "Big Three" with 12 Top 2 finishes.

2021: 12th Barcelona Open and 10th Italian Open titles, and injury-shortened season

Main article: 2021 Rafael Nadal tennis season

At the 2021 Australian Open, Nadal lost in the quarterfinals to world No. 5 Stefanos Tsitsipas, despite being two sets to love up. Nadal next played at the Monte Carlo Masters and defeated Federico Delbonis and Grigor Dimitrov in straight sets to reach the quarterfinals, where he lost to Andrey Rublev in three sets. On 25 April, Nadal won a record-extending twelfth Barcelona Open trophy with a three-set victory over Stefanos Tsitsipas in the final, saving a championship point in the third set. At 3 hours and 38 minutes, this was the longest best-of-three-set ATP Tour final since ATP began publishing statistics in 1991. In May he reached the quarterfinals at the Madrid Open. He won a record-extending tenth Italian Open title, saving two match points against Denis Shapovalov before beating Novak Djokovic in the final.

At the French Open, he reached the semi-finals after wins over Jannik Sinner and Diego Schwartzman. There, Nadal was upset by eventual champion Djokovic in four sets, in only his third-ever loss at the French Open and his first loss in the semi-finals. After several weeks out injured, Nadal returned to action at the 2021 Citi Open, revealing that his recent withdrawals from tournaments were due to a recurring left foot injury that returned at the 2021 French Open. He defeated home favorite Jack Sock in a tight 3 set match before being upset by 50th ranked Lloyd Harris in the 3rd round. He was set to defend his title at the National Bank Open, but withdrew from the tournament before his first match, citing the same foot injury and on 20 August 2021, Nadal announced that would be ending his 2021 season due to the left foot issue that had been troubling him for most of the year. Therefore, his ranking fell to No.6, due to his injury.

Nadal returned to the court on 17 December 2021, in an exhibition match at the Mubadala World Tennis Championship in Abu Dhabi. Nadal lost to Andy Murray in the semi-finals in straight sets. In the third place play-off, he lost to Denis Shapovalov in three sets.

2022: 21st and 22nd majors, and double Career Grand Slam

Main article: 2022 Rafael Nadal tennis season

In January, Nadal won his 89th ATP singles title at Melbourne Summer Set 1, beating Maxime Cressy in the final. Nadal won his second Australian Open title and a 21st major title by defeating Karen Khachanov, Denis Shapovalov, Matteo Berrettini and Daniil Medvedev in a five-set final, coming back from two sets down. With the win, Nadal surpassed a tie with Novak Djokovic and Roger Federer for the most men's singles major titles of all time. He also became the second man in the Open Era, after Djokovic, to complete the double Career Grand Slam.

At the Mexican Open, Nadal won the title without dropping a set, which included a win over Medvedev, who that week had clinched the world No. 1 ranking. He also extended his winning streak to 15 matches, his best start to a season in his career. Nadal next entered the 2022 Indian Wells Open as the fourth seed. He won on a final set tie-break from Sebastian Korda in the second round, then beat Dan Evans, Reilly Opelka, Nick Kyrgios, and Carlos Alcaraz to reach his fourth final of the season and extend his winning streak to 20 matches. Nadal was beaten by Taylor Fritz in straight sets in the final, ending his winning streak. Then Nadal didn't play for several weeks, due to a rib stress fracture that occurred during Indian Wells.

Nadal returned at the Madrid Open, where he defeated Miomir Kecmanović, David Goffin in the second and third rounds respectively. He then lost to Carlos Alcaraz in a rematch of their Indian Wells semi-final. At Rome, he defeated John Isner in straight sets, but then lost to Denis Shapovalov in three sets despite leading by a set and a break.

At the French Open, Nadal recorded his 106th win defeating Jordan Thompson in the first round, becoming the player with the most wins at a single major. He recorded his 300th career major win by defeating Corentin Moutet in the second round. He defeated Botic van de Zandschulp. He beat Felix Auger Aliassime (coached by Nadal's uncle Toni) in the fourth round, after being taken to five sets for the third time in his career at the French Open. Nadal met Djokovic for the 59th time in the quarterfinals – the first ever singles match to feature two players each holding at least 20 Grand Slam titles and 1000 career match wins. Nadal won in four sets to advance to his 15th French Open semi-final. He faced Alexander Zverev in a grueling battle lasting over three hours with only two sets played, and ended with Zverev's retirement due to an ankle injury. In the final, he defeated Casper Ruud in three sets to win his 14th French Open title and 22nd major title overall and reached world No. 4. He became the then-oldest French Open champion ever, and the third man to earn four Top-10 wins en route to a major title since the ATP rankings started in 1973, after Mats Wilander (1982 French Open) and Federer (2017 Australian Open).

After treating his foot injury, Nadal returned to Wimbledon for the first time in three years. He defeated Taylor Fritz in the quarterfinal, but aggravated his abdominal injury, and had to withdraw from the tournament.

After a six-week break following Wimbledon, Nadal lost in the opening round at the Cincinnati Open to eventual champion Borna Ćorić. Despite this setback, Nadal was the first to qualify for the 2022 Nitto ATP Finals. Nadal returned to the US Open for the first time since winning the title in 2019. He defeated Rinky Hijikata, Fabio Fognini and Richard Gasquet, before losing to Frances Tiafoe, his only loss at a major in 2022, and his earliest major defeat since the 2017 Wimbledon Championships.

At the Laver Cup, Nadal competed for Team Europe alongside Roger Federer, Novak Djokovic, and Andy Murray. He played one match on Day 1, where he partnered in doubles with rival Federer, for Federer's final professional match, losing to Jack Sock and Frances Tiafoe. Nadal withdrew from the tournament the following day, citing "personal reasons".

At the ATP Finals, Nadal won his last match of the year against Casper Ruud after losing his first two matches. Nadal finished the 2022 season with a year-end ranking of world No. 2, becoming the oldest year-end top-2 player in the history of the ATP rankings.

2023: Injury struggles and exit from top 100 after 20 consecutive years

Nadal was the defending champion at the 2023 Australian Open, but lost in straight sets to Mackenzie McDonald in the second round. During the match, Nadal was severely hampered by a hip injury for which he received treatment. In late February, Nadal announced his withdrawal from the Indian Wells and Miami Masters to recover from his Australian Open injury. As a result, he exited the Top 10 for the first time since 25 April 2005 (after 18 years, 912 consecutive weeks) on 20 March 2023, ending the longest Top-10 streak in ATP rankings history. Having not played since the Australian Open, he hinted in September that he would like to return for a final year in 2024.

2024: Return to the tour and retirement

Nadal began his season at the 2024 Brisbane International, defeating Dominic Thiem and Jason Kubler before losing to Jordan Thompson, despite holding three match points. During the match, he sustained a muscle injury that forced him to miss the Australian Open. Nadal next played Carlos Alcaraz in the "Netflix Slam," a televised exhibition match in March.

Following a second-round loss to Alex de Minaur at the Barcelona Open, Nadal reached the fourth round at the Madrid Open, defeating de Minaur en route. He lost in round two at the Italian Open. In May, Nadal lost in the first round of the French Open to world No. 4 and eventual runner-up Alexander Zverev. This brought his final Roland-Garros record to 112–4.

Nadal returned to the court at the Swedish Open in July, partnering with Casper Ruud in doubles to defeat second seeds Miguel Ángel Reyes-Varela and Guido Andreozzi. In singles he reached his last career ATP Tour final with wins over Leo Borg, fifth seed Cameron Norrie, fourth seed Mariano Navone in a marathon match lasting four hours, and Duje Ajduković. He lost to Nuno Borges in straight sets.

Nadal then competed in the Summer Olympics, where he served as a torch bearer during the opening ceremony. In singles, he lost in the second round to eventual champion Novak Djokovic in their record 60th professional meeting. He also played doubles with Alcaraz, reaching the quarterfinals.

On 10 October 2024, Nadal stated his intention to retire from the sport after playing for Spain in the Davis Cup Finals in Málaga, Spain, in November. Later that month he participated in the exhibition 6 Kings Slam, losing his matches against Alcaraz and Djokovic.

At the Davis Cup Finals in Málaga, Nadal was defeated by Botic van de Zandschulp as Spain lost to the Netherlands in the quarterfinals. After the conclusion of the tie, Nadal gave a speech and a video montage was played of career highlights and personal messages, including from Federer, Djokovic, Serena Williams, Andy Murray, footballer Andrés Iniesta and golfer Sergio García.

Rivalries

See also: List of tennis rivalries and Big Three (tennis)

"It's true that with Novak I played more matches than with Roger, but I started it with him (Federer). Someone I have admired, whom I have rivaled and also with whom I have shared many beautiful things on and off the court. A part of my life left with him."

–Nadal, on his rivalry with Roger Federer following his retirement in November 2022.

Nadal vs. Federer

Main article: Federer–Nadal rivalry

Roger Federer and Nadal played each other from 2004 to 2019, and their rivalry was a significant part of both men's careers. They held the top two rankings on the ATP Tour from July 2005 to 14 August 2009, and again from 11 September 2017 to 15 October 2018. They are the only pair of men to be consistently ranked in the Top 2 for four years continuously (from July 2005 to August 2009). Nadal ascended to No. 2 in July 2005 and held this spot for a record 160 consecutive weeks before surpassing Federer in August 2008. Nadal and Federer are also the only pair of men to have ever finished six consecutive calendar years at the top 2 positions (from 2005 to 2010).

Nadal and Federer faced each other 40 times, with Nadal leading 24–16 overall and 10–4 in Grand Slam matches. Nadal had a winning record on clay (14–2) and outdoor hard courts (8–6), while Federer led on indoor hard courts (5–1) and grass (3–1).

24 of their matches were in tournament finals, including a joint-record nine major finals (tied with Djokovic–Nadal). From 2006 to 2008, they played in every French Open and Wimbledon final, and also met in the title matches of the 2009 Australian Open, the 2011 French Open and the 2017 Australian Open. Nadal won six of the nine, losing the first two Wimbledon finals and 2017 in Australia. Four of these matches were five-set matches (2007 and 2008 Wimbledon, 2009 and 2017 Australian Open), and the 2008 Wimbledon final has been lauded as the greatest match ever. Nadal was the only player to defeat Federer in the final of a major on all three surfaces (grass, hard court, and clay).

Nadal vs. Djokovic

Main article: Djokovic–Nadal rivalry

Novak Djokovic and Nadal met 60 times, more than any other pair in the Open Era. Nadal led 11–7 at Grand Slam events but trailed 29–31 overall. They played a record 18 Grand Slam matches and a joint-record nine Grand Slam tournament finals (tied with Nadal–Federer). Nadal led on clay (20–9), while Djokovic led on hard courts (20–7), and they were tied 2–2 on grass. In 2009, this rivalry was listed as the third greatest of the previous 10 years by ATPworldtour.com. Djokovic was one of only two players to win at least ten match wins against Nadal alongside Federer and was the only person to defeat Nadal seven consecutive times, doing so twice. They also played in a record 14 ATP Masters finals.

In their first Grand Slam final at the 2010 US Open, Nadal beat Djokovic in four sets, achieving the career Grand Slam. In 2011–12, they contested four consecutive major finals, with Djokovic winning the first three at Wimbledon, the US Open, and the Australian Open, the last being the longest Grand Slam final in history at 5 hours and 53 minutes. It remains the longest match of both Nadal and Djokovic's careers, and the only time Nadal lost a major final after winning the first set. In 2013, Djokovic defeated Nadal in straight sets in the final at Monte Carlo, ending Nadal's record eight consecutive titles there, but Nadal earned revenge in the French Open semifinals in an epic five-setter. Later that year, Nadal defeated Djokovic in the US Open final to complete the Summer Slam.

Many of their matches are considered among the greatest in tennis history by analysts, such as 2009 Madrid Masters semifinal, 2011 Miami Masters final, the 2012 Australian Open final, the 2013 French Open semifinal, 2018 Wimbledon semifinal, and the 2021 French Open semifinal.

Legacy

Nadal is, without a doubt, the best athlete in the history of Spain. Spain has to pay him a tribute for many, many years. Nadal is the king of Roland Garros and of world tennis. He has achieved a record that is very difficult to beat.

— Felipe VI, on Nadal's legacy after he won his 22nd Grand Slam at the French Open in 2022.

Nadal won the second-most major men's singles titles (22) in tennis history and the second-most "Big" titles (59) since 1990. He appeared in the Top 10 of the ATP rankings consecutively from April 2005 to March 2023 – a record spanning 912 weeks. He stands alone in the Open Era as the player with the most clay court titles (63), consisting of an all-time record 14 French Open titles, 12 Barcelona Open titles, 11 Monte-Carlo Masters titles, and 10 Italian Open titles. His 14 French Open titles are a record at any single tournament, and he holds the open era records for the longest single-surface win streak in matches (81 on clay) and in sets (50 on clay). Nadal holds the men's all-time records for the most majors won without losing a set (4), the most match wins at a single major (112 at the French Open), and the highest match-winning percentage at clay court majors (97.4%), among many others. Nadal's dominance on clay is reflected by his honorific title as the "King of Clay", and he is widely regarded as the greatest clay-court player in history. Nadal is considered by many to be the greatest player in tennis history because of his record and evolution into an all-court champion.

Nadal played an instrumental role in taking Spain to four Davis Cup crowns, and won two Olympic gold medals. He is one of three men, along with Agassi and Djokovic, to win the Olympic gold medal as well as the four majors in singles in his career, a feat known as a Career Golden Slam. He is the only male player in history to complete the Career Grand Slam and win an Olympic gold medal in both singles and doubles. He is one of four men in history, along with Roy Emerson, Rod Laver and Djokovic, to complete the double Career Grand Slam in singles.

Among his numerous career accolades, Nadal was named the Laureus World Sportsman of the Year in 2011 and 2021, and for winning three majors in 2010 he was named that year's BBC Overseas Sports Personality of the Year. He is an honorary recipient of the Grand Cross of Royal Order of Sports Merit, Grand Cross of Order of the Second of May, the Grand Cross of Naval Merit, the Princess of Asturias Award, and the Medal of the City of Paris. He was ranked as one of the world's highest-paid athletes by Forbes magazine in 2014. He was also named among the 100 most influential people in the world by Time magazine in 2022.

In 2014, former tennis player and eight-time Grand Slam champion Andre Agassi picked Nadal as the greatest of all time because of the way the Spaniard "had to deal with Federer, Djokovic, and Murray in a golden age of tennis". In 2019, former world No. 1 and 1995 French Open champion Thomas Muster stated: "Rafael Nadal is the best clay-court player ever". Former world No. 1 Carlos Moyá stated in 2010 that Nadal was "one of the greatest ever. But he is on his way to become, who knows, maybe the greatest". Former world No. 1 Juan Carlos Ferrero: "Rafa is the king of knowing how to adapt to any situation in the match". Former world No. 1 and rival Novak Djokovic: "Our encounters have made me the player I am today". Former world No. 1 and rival Roger Federer: "I have always had the utmost respect for my friend Rafa as a person and as a champion. I believe we have pushed each other to become better players".

Nadal played an instrumental role in the sport's revival, ushering in the Golden Age of tennis, which saw increased interest and higher revenues across tennis venues globally. The Djokovic–Nadal and Federer–Nadal rivalries are widely considered by players, coaches, and pundits to be among the greatest rivalries in sports history.

Player profile

Playing style

It is important to have true inner humility, not false humility, accepting that it's not always good, bad moments are better tolerated. People sometimes exaggerate this business of humility. It's simply a question of knowing who you are, where you are, and that the world will continue exactly as it is without you.

Nadal, speaking to the press at the 2008 US Open.

Nadal generally played an aggressive, behind-the-baseline game founded on heavy topspin groundstrokes, consistency, speedy footwork and tenacious court coverage, thus making him an aggressive counterpuncher. Known for his athleticism and speed around the court, Nadal was an excellent defender who hit well on the run, constructing winning plays from seemingly defensive positions. He also played very fine dropshots, which worked well because his heavy topspin often forced opponents to the back of the court.

File:Nadal MA14 (4) - Copy (14402855966).jpg

Nadal hitting a forehand.

Nadal employed a semi-western grip forehand, often with a "lasso-whip" follow-through, where his left arm hit through the ball and finished above his left shoulder – as opposed to a more traditional finish across the body or around his opposite shoulder. Nadal's forehand groundstroke form allowed him to hit shots with heavy topspin – more so than many of his contemporaries.

San Francisco tennis researcher John Yandell used a high-speed video camera and special software to count the average number of revolutions of a tennis ball hit full force by Nadal. Yandell concluded:

The first guys we did were Sampras and Agassi. They were hitting forehands that in general were spinning about 1,800 to 1,900 revolutions per minute. Federer is hitting with an amazing amount of spin, too, right? 2,700 revolutions per minute. Well, we measured one forehand Nadal hit at 4,900. His average was 3,200.

While Nadal's shots tended to land short of the baseline, the characteristically high bounces his forehands achieved tended to mitigate the advantage an opponent would normally gain from capitalizing on a short ball. Although his forehand was based on heavy topspin, he hit the ball deep and flat with a more orthodox follow through for clean winners, but instead of being admired for his finesse and angles, it was the brutality of his groundstrokes that caught the public eye.

Nadal's serve was considered a weak point in his game, although improvements in both first-serve points won and break points saved since 2005 allowed him to consistently compete for and win major titles on faster surfaces. Nadal relied on the consistency of his serve to gain a strategic advantage in points, rather than going for service winners. Before the 2010 US Open, he altered his service motion, arriving in the trophy pose earlier and pulling the racket lower during the trophy pose. Moreover, he also modified his service grip to a more continental one, swiveling his iron left wrist a few millimeters on the racket. These two changes in his serve increased his average speed by around 10 mph during the 2010 US Open, maxing out at 135 mph (217 km/h), allowing him to win more free points on his serve. Since the 2010 US Open, Nadal's serve speed dropped to previous levels and was again cited as in need of improvement. From 2019 onwards, several analysts praised Nadal's improvement on the serve, noting the speed of his serve had increased.

Nadal was a clay court maestro, winning 14 times at the French Open, 12 at Barcelona, 11 at Monte Carlo, and 10 at Rome. However, Nadal also held simultaneous Grand Slam tournament titles on grass, hard courts, and clay on two separate occasions, winning ten Masters titles on hard court, and winning an Olympic gold medal on hard court. Even though he has been successful on hard courts, Nadal himself admitted that playing a lot on them is tiring and takes a physical toll on ATP Tour players, so he repeatedly requested for a reevaluated tour schedule featuring fewer hard court tournaments and increasing the weeks of rest.

Despite praise for Nadal's talent and skill, in the past, some had questioned his longevity in the sport, citing his build and playing style as conducive to injury. After winning the 2010 US Open, former world No. 1 Pete Sampras stated: "The only question with Rafa is physically how much his body can handle the pounding with how hard he works for every point. You just watch him play, the kid is relentless". This "longevity" narrative was proven inaccurate, and pundits later admired his resilience to come back from devastating injuries and his ability to play with physical pain.

Attitude and demeanor

Freezing cold water. I do this before every match. It's the point before the point of no return. Under the cold shower I enter a new space in which I feel my power and resilience grow. I'm a different man when I emerge. I'm activated. I'm in "the flow"... Nothing else exists but the battle ahead.

–Nadal, on his pre-match rituals.

Despite his success, his uncle Toni ensured that Nadal remained as normal, modest, and down to earth as possible and believed these qualities had a tremendous impact on his results and motivation. He rarely if ever touted his achievements, refused to put down his rivals, and lingered after matches and practices to sign autographs. For instance, in 2007, Nadal would often interrupt his training sessions on the public courts of Manacor, just to hit a few balls with fans and foreign tourists that had asked him to, even though they were not very good, and even against his uncle Toni’s wishes, who had to tell him that he "cannot do this all the time". Former world No. 6 Gilles Simon stressed that more than being grounded and simple off the court, what separated Nadal from the rest was his on-court humility, stating "Do not tell me that Rafael Nadal is not humble because he said in a press conference that he is not favorite in the first round of Roland-Garros".

Nadal was also noted for his visceral delight in competing, whether he won or lost. He also had a rare philosophical approach to tennis and life that one sportswriter described as a "model of humility, empathy, and perspective".

Nadal was known for a host of on-court rituals including specific bodily movements and the positioning of items courtside. At changeovers, he always waited until his opponent crossed the net, refused to step on the lines, and devotedly lined up his drinks bottles in precise positions near his chair, labels always facing out, before stepping back into action. His water-bottle routine was so well-known that when they fell over during a match at the 2015 Australian Open, a ball boy dashed over to return the bottles to their upright position, with the labels facing the court as Nadal had intended. Nadal explained that such rituals did not stem from an obsessive–compulsive disorder complex and were not based on superstition; they were instead meant to work as an almost therapeutic, psychological mechanism to help him stay calm in incredibly stressful situations.

There was also a pattern to the way he approached a serve. He usually took three balls, examined them, discarded one, shook the strands of hair that were not corralled by his headband out of his eyes, and then served. Nadal constantly picked at the rear of his shorts, wiped sweat from his brow and pushed hair back behind his ears before every serve. Nadal's extensive time taken between points received criticism from other players including Roger Federer and Denis Shapovalov, with the latter wanting Nadal to be given a code violation for pushing the 25-second serve clock to the limit, stating that he was being given preferential treatment because of his status in the game.

Coaching and personal team

Nadal's first and most important coach was his uncle Toni Nadal, who coached him from 1990 to 2017, from age 4 to 31. Though strong physically as a player, Toni Nadal had struggled to be aggressive with his forehand and possessed no big shots. Along with working on the mental and physical sides, as Nadal improved, he ensured that his nephew developed a good technical, all-round aggressive game, became competent at the net, and developed his forehand into a weapon.

At age 12, Nadal began attending the Balearic Islands training centre 50 kilometers away from Manacor in Palma. He and his uncle came to train there three times a week, so that Nadal could train with the best boys in the Balearic Islands. There, he was trained along with his uncle Toni, by Toni Colom, who became Nadal’s traveling coach for the next four years, between 1999 and 2003, mainly for Futures tournaments. Colom later explained that "I was traveling to those tournaments because I had a bigger availability of traveling [than Toni] and not because I was more experienced". After 2005, Nadal left the structure of the Balearic School and little by little he created his own team.

Unlike most of his contemporaries, Nadal remained loyal and rarely made changes to it. For instance, he worked with the exact same team for 11 years between 2006 and 2017. Nadal’s team consisted of members from his family and professional staff, whom Nadal also considered his family. Besides Toni, the first members of his team were Joan Forcades, Nadal's instructor since childhood, and doctor Ángel Ruiz Cotorro, who had a crucial participation in his professional tennis career. Cotorro, who has also worked with Juan Martín del Potro and Arantxa Sánchez Vicario, helped him play after facing injuries and his suggestions were pivotal to his game. Nadal has said of his doctor that: "I trust Dr. Cotorro with my life. He was my doctor then, he remains my doctor today, and if I have anything to do with it he will remain my doctor till the day I retire". Forcades is the lead fitness expert for Nadal and develops his training program that is further implemented by the other experts who work with Nadal.

Toni has described his coaching style as 'hard', saying that he occasionally put too much pressure on Nadal, but that he did so because he wanted him to succeed. Together, they won 16 major titles between 2005 and 2016, making them the second most successful tennis coach-player partnership only behind Marián Vajda and Novak Djokovic.

In 2005, Nadal was signed by Spanish agent Carlos Costa, who managed everything related to advertising, sponsorship or social events. In 2006, Costa and Nadal's father convinced Benito Pérez Barbadillo, who had been working as the press officer of the ATP since the late 1990s, to open his own company (B1PR) to work with them as Nadal's communications director (PR manager). Nadal then hired physiotherapist Rafael Maymó, who designed his physical preparation together with Forcades and who was one of Nadal's closest friends, thus also acting as a psychologist. Nadal stated that Maymó was "almost my shadow since 2006" and that they spent more time with each other than they did with their wives.

After signing his new coach Carlos Moyá in December 2016, Nadal's game style acquired a more offensive approach. Under Moyá's direction, Nadal improved his serve, and incorporated serve-and-volley as a surprise tactic in some of his matches. Moyá, who has known Nadal since he was 12, was more a friend than a coach, and when he realized that Nadal was going through a bad time, he left his duty as a coach and acted like a friend with whom Nadal could speak to.

Francisco Roig, who was hired by Nadal in 2005, acted as the alternate coach.

Equipment and apparel

Nadal wearing his signature Nike sleeveless shirt at the French Open in 2007, while holding his Babolat racquet

Nike served as Nadal's clothing and shoe sponsor. Nadal's signature on-court attire entailed a variety of sleeveless shirts paired with 3/4 length capri pants. For the 2009 season, Nadal adopted more-traditional on-court apparel. Nike encouraged Nadal to update his look in order to reflect his new status as the sport's top player at that time and associate Nadal with a style that, while less distinctive than his "pirate" look, would be more widely emulated by consumers. At warmup tournaments in Abu Dhabi and Doha, Nadal played matches in a polo shirt specifically designed for him by Nike, paired with shorts cut above the knee. Nadal's new, more conventional style carried over to the 2009 Australian Open, where he was outfitted with Nike's Bold Crew Men's Tee and Nadal Long Check Shorts. Nadal wore Nike's Air CourtBallistec 2.3 tennis shoes, with various customizations throughout the season, including his nickname "Rafa" on the right shoe and a stylized bull logo on the left.

Nadal used an AeroPro Drive racquet with a ​4 ¹⁄₄-inch L2 grip. As of the 2010 season, Nadal's racquets were painted to resemble the Babolat AeroPro Drive with Cortex GT racquet in order to market a current model that Babolat sold. Nadal used no replacement grip, and instead wrapped two overgrips around the handle. He used Duralast 15L strings until the 2010 season, when he switched to Babolat's new, black-colored, RPM Blast string. Nadal's rackets were always strung at 55 lb (25 kg), regardless of which surface or conditions he played on.

Off the court

In popular culture

Nadal's autobiography, Rafa, written with John Carlin, was published in August 2011.

In February 2010, Rafael Nadal was featured in the music video for Shakira's "Gypsy", filmed in Barcelona. Both later denied rumours of a romantic relationship. Shakira explained her choice of Nadal, saying, "I thought that maybe I needed someone I could in some way identify with. And Rafael Nadal is a person who has been totally committed to his career since he was very young." In 2016, Nadal was one of many celebrities making a cameo in the music video for RedOne's "Don't You Need Somebody".

In 2018, Nadal was featured in a new ad for the 2018 tennis game Mario Tennis Aces, part of the Mario Tennis series.

Nadal appears in the 2024 documentary Federer: Twelve Final Days about Roger Federer's final tournament before his retirement, the 2022 Laver Cup.

Homages and tributes

In April 2017, the centre court of the Barcelona Open was named Pista Rafa Nadal. In 2021, prior to the tournament, the French Open paid tribute to Nadal by installing a 3-metre tall steel statue at Stade Roland Garros, created by Spanish sculptor Jordi Díez Fernández.

128036 Rafaelnadal is a main belt asteroid discovered in 2003 at the Observatorio Astronómico de Mallorca and named after Nadal. The International Astronomical Union applied the name at the observatory's request. The asteroid is four kilometers in diameter and travels through space at a speed of 20 km per second.

At both the London and Rio Olympic Games, Nadal was chosen as Spain's flag bearer. Although he had to forfeit the role in 2012 due to injury, he carried the flag during the opening ceremony of the 2016 Games, describing it as an "incredible experience".

Philanthropy

In November 2007, Nadal launched the nonprofit Fundación Rafa Nadal with an official presentation in February 2008, at the Manacor Tennis Club in Mallorca. The foundation was created to help disadvantaged children and teenagers, offering them opportunities through sports. His wife Maria Perello works as the director of the foundation.

In response to the 2010 Haiti earthquake, Nadal played in a special charity event alongside fellow top tennis players during the 2010 Australian Open called Hit for Haiti, with proceeds going to Haiti earthquake victims. He participated in a follow-up charity exhibition during the 2010 Indian Wells Open, pairing with Andre Agassi in an eventual loss to Roger Federer and Pete Sampras; it raised $1 million. In late 2010, Nadal played his rival Roger Federer in the two-match exhibition Match for Africa for the Roger Federer Foundation and the Rafa Nadal Foundation. The first match took place in Zürich on 21 December, and was won by Federer, while the following match was played in Madrid, and it was won by Nadal.

His foundation and academy have frequently come to the aid of those in need, especially in Spain. During the Majorca flood in October 2018, Nadal, who was recovering from injury at home in Majorca, opened his tennis academy centre to the victims. One day after the flood he worked personally with some friends to help the victims, being photographed lending his hand in the cleaning up process once the flood waters had receded. Later, Nadal donated €1 million for rebuilding Sant Llorenç des Cardassar, the most affected town by the floods in the island. Nadal also organized other charitable activities to help repair the damage of the disaster, such as the Olazábal & Nadal charity golf tournament

To combat the ill-effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, Nadal joined hands with Pau Gasol in June to help raise upwards of 14 million euros. The proceeds in their entirety were directed towards the people suffering from the effects of the deadly virus. In 2020, the Fundación Rafa Nadal pledged to support the Food Bank of Mallorca, announcing that it would aim to collect 3,000 kg of food to support 25,000 individuals in Mallorca.

On the International Day of Sport on 6 April 2023, the Fundación Rafa Nadal announced that they would partner with UNESCO through its Fit for Life project, a sport-based flagship program designed to tackle physical inactivity, such as accelerating the recovery from COVID-19, mental health issues, and inequality.

Nadal supports or has supported other charities, such as City Harvest, Elton John AIDS Foundation, Laureus Sport for Good Foundation and Small Steps Project. As a result of his various charitable contributions through the Rafa Nadal Foundation, Nadal was awarded the Arthur Ashe Humanitarian of the Year award for 2011.

Sponsorships and endorsements

Nadal was sponsored by Kia Motors since 2006. He appeared in advertising campaigns for Kia as a global ambassador for the company.

He became the face of Lanvin's L'Homme Sport cologne in April 2009. Nadal was the international ambassador for Quely, a company from his native Mallorca that manufactures biscuits, bakery and chocolate-coated products. In 2010, luxury watchmaker Richard Mille announced that he had developed an ultra-light wristwatch in collaboration with Nadal.

Nadal replaced Cristiano Ronaldo as the new face of Emporio Armani Underwear and Armani Jeans for the spring/summer 2011 collection. This was the first time that the label had chosen a tennis player for the job. Armani said that he selected Nadal as his latest male underwear model because "...he is ideal as he represents a healthy and positive model for youngsters".

In June 2012, Nadal joined the group of sports endorsers of the PokerStars online poker cardroom. Nadal won a charity poker tournament against retired Brazilian football player Ronaldo in 2014.

In August 2023, Nadal signed up as the brand ambassador for the Indian IT major Infosys. Rafael said: "I’m very happy to work closely with Infosys, as they work to not only evolve the experience of tennis to the times, but also empower people in our communities to be part of a brighter future."

Rafa Nadal Sports Centre

Nadal owns and trained at the Rafa Nadal Sports Centre (40,000 m², 430,000 sq ft) in his hometown of Manacor, Mallorca. The centre houses the Rafa Nadal Academy, where the American International School of Mallorca is located, making it easier for the players to handle school and tennis while still getting a good education. The academy is used by both young Spanish tennis players as well as players from other countries. For instance, in 2017, the Australian tennis federation agreed to partner with Nadal's Academy to allow their players use it as their European training base. Nadal's coach and uncle Toni Nadal is the head of the academy, his agent Carlos Costa is the head of business development, and fellow Majorcan Carlos Moyá is involved as a technical director.

In 2021, a four-episode series about the Rafa Nadal Academy was aired on Amazon Prime and Movistar and was broadcast in 244 countries. The series features several young tennis talents telling their stories and experiences at the academy.

Nadal also owns and operates three other similar Rafa Nadal Academy/Centre facilities in Al Zahra, Kuwait (called the Rafa Nadal Academy Kuwait), Cancún, Mexico (called the Rafa Nadal Tennis Centre Mexico), and Chalkidiki, Greece (called the Rafa Nadal Tennis Centre Greece). The Mexico and Greece Centres started operations in 2019 while the Kuwait Academy opened in 2020.

As of 2024, the former world No. 1 and 22-time Grand Slam champion will promote tennis in Saudi Arabia and open a Rafa Nadal Academy there.

Involvement in football and other sports

Nadal is an avid football fan and his favorite clubs are RCD Mallorca and Real Madrid CF, stating "when my uncle (Miguel Ángel) was playing for Barcelona, we wanted Barcelona to win. Before that, my whole family was for Real Madrid. After my uncle left the Barcelona team, then we’re all for the Real Madrid again. I have got nothing against Barcelona, but I prefer Real Madrid to win". According to his uncle Toni, Nadal regards French football player Zinedine Zidane as an athlete who is "as high as any man can get". In 2005, Nadal received the Coupe des Mousquetaires from the hands of Zidane, who called him "a phenomenon".

In December 2007, in the "Friends of Iker v Friends of Rafa" charity sports event, the two teams contested a tennis match and a football match. In December 2008, Nadal and Casillas staged a similar event, this time including an indoor football match, a tennis match, and a go-kart race.

On 8 July 2010, it was reported that he had become a shareholder of RCD Mallorca, his local club by birth, in an attempt to assist the club from debt. Nadal reportedly owns 10 percent and was offered the role of vice president, which he rejected. His uncle Miguel Ángel Nadal became assistant coach under Michael Laudrup. Shortly after acquiring his interest in Mallorca, Nadal called out UEFA for apparent hypocrisy in ejecting the club from the 2010–11 UEFA Europa League for excessive debts, saying through a club spokesperson, "Well, if those are the criteria upon which UEFA is operating, then European competition will only comprise two or three clubs because all the rest are in debt, too."

He is a fervent supporter of the Spanish national team, and he was one of six people not affiliated with the team or the national federation allowed to enter the team's locker room following Spain's victory in the 2010 FIFA World Cup Final.

Nadal has made several honorary kick-offs, such as in the Parc des Princes between PSG and Stade de Reims for a Ligue 1 match in 2012, swapping his racket for the shirt of Zlatan Ibrahimovic, and in Rio's local football derby between CR Vasco da Gama and CR Flamengo at the Maracanã Stadium in 2014. In 2022, Nadal was took the symbolic kick-off between Real Madrid and RCD Espanyol for a La Liga match at the Santiago Bernabéu Stadium. In 2023, Nadal kicked-off a Copa del Rey match between his hometown club CE Manacor and UD Las Palmas.

In addition to tennis and football, Nadal enjoys playing golf and poker. In October 2020, Nadal competed in the professional-level Balearic Golf Championship, obtaining a World Amateur Golf Ranking in the process. Nadal plays golf with even more determination than tennis, stating "I am decidedly unfriendly during a golf game, from the first hole to the last".

Personal life

I love fishing for three reasons: the calm and tranquillity, the beauty of the sea –- and, of course, the satisfaction of catching your dinner. I can forget about everything. No one can call me, because I keep my mobile switched off, so I can relax and not think about tennis.

— Nadal, on his love for fishing in his leisure time to the Daily Mail in 2007.

Family and children

In June 2009, reports emerged that Nadal's parents, Ana María and Sebastián, had separated, following weeks of speculation about his recent struggles on the court. Nadal later stated "My parents' divorce made an important change in my life. It affected me. After that, I couldn't play Wimbledon, it was tough. For one month I was outside the world."

Nadal met his future wife, María Francisca (Mery) Perelló Pascual through his younger sister, María Isabel. They began dating in 2005, when he was 19 and she was 17, and only formalized their relationship publicly in 2007, with their engagement reported in January 2019.

In October 2019, the couple was married at the La Fortaleza castle in Port de Pollença, Majorca, in a wedding ceremony that had 350 guests. On 8 October 2022, they welcomed their first child, a son named Rafael. Nadal had previously commented on not starting a family early and expressed a desire to have children in the future, reflecting on the unpredictability of life during his ongoing tennis career.

Mery Perelló was a sports marketer in London, but later, as she saw Nadal’s career getting bigger, she decided to help his off-court business. She now serves as the director of Fundación Rafa Nadal.

Residences

When Nadal was aged 10 to 21, the extended Nadal family shared a five-storey, family-owned apartment building in Manacor, highlighting their close-knit ties. In 2008, at age 21, Nadal was still living with his parents despite being a superstar with nearly $16 million in prize money and various endorsement deals.

In 2012, Nadal purchased a house in Porto Cristo for about 4 million euros, located near his family home. Around the time he won the 2012 French Open, Nadal acquired a vacation home, a two-story villa in Playa Nueva Romana, in the Dominican Republic, for about 2 million euros.

Religion and multilingualism

Nadal was raised a Catholic, but now identifies as an agnostic atheist. In a 2010 interview, Nadal was asked whether he believed in God, to which he replied it was "a very difficult thing for me to believe". Asked about the war in Afghanistan in a 2009 interview in Spanish, Nadal said "One can be religious, atheist, Christian, Muslim, whatever, but to get to all the barbarities that have been committed for religion is too much. For me, religion is the greatest cause of mortality in history."

Nadal's native languages are Spanish and Balearic Catalan, he also speaks conversational English.

Other endeavors

As a young boy, he would run home from school to watch his favorite Japanese anime, Dragon Ball, and CNN once dubbed him "the Dragon Ball of tennis" for his unorthodox style.

Off the court, his sister described him as "a bit of a scaredy cat". Since childhood, he has had a fear of the dark, preferring to sleep with a light or television on to drown out outside noises. Furthermore, Nadal is afraid of deep water, dogs, and thunderstorms, hiding under cushions each time there is one, and is nervous about riding a bicycle.

Despite playing tennis left-handed, Nadal is known for being right-handed in other activities such as eating, writing, and playing golf and darts.

Nadal loves his PlayStation, going to the cinema with friends, and spending a lot of time reading and surfing the internet. He makes a yearly trip to Broadway to see musicals, claiming he has seen Mamma Mia, Les Miserables, and Phantom of the Opera six or seven times. Nadal also enjoys fishing due to its relaxing nature. During the Covid-19 pandemic, he built on his hobby of cooking, which already was one of his favourite pastimes.

Diet and lifestyle

Nadal followed a straightforward diet to maintain his physical fitness. He enjoys seafood, particularly fish grilled with olive oil, which he enjoys preparing himself after catching it fishing. His typical meals include some carbohydrates like pasta or rice. During a 2016 cooking event with chef Marcus Samuelsson, Nadal responded to a question about his preferred meal while competing, "always seafood". Alongside healthier fare, he indulges in olives and chocolate as guilty pleasures.

Health

Throughout his career, Nadal expressed a lot of concern over his knee injuries, which were long-lasting and chronic, sidelining him from multiple tournaments. In late 2012, Nadal received over six months of physical therapy, along with Platelet-rich plasma (PRP) therapy, a non-surgical treatment option for people with sprained knees and chronic tendon injuries that had been previously disallowed by the World Anti-Doping Agency. Following the PRP therapy, 2013 became one of Nadal's most successful years.

Nadal has a rare chronic disorder of his left ankle, Mueller-Weiss syndrome. He received anesthetic injections en route to winning the 2022 French Open. He had been diagnosed at the age of 19.

Career statistics

Main article: Rafael Nadal career statistics

Grand Slam tournament performance timeline

Key

W

F

SF

QF

R#

RR

Q#

A

NH

(W) Won tournament; reached (F) final, (SF) semifinal, (QF) quarterfinal; (R#) rounds 4, 3, 2, 1; competed at a (RR) round-robin stage; reached a (Q#) qualification round; (A) absent from tournament; or (NH) tournament not held.

To avoid confusion and double counting, these charts are updated either at the conclusion of a tournament, or when the player's participation in the tournament has ended.

Tournament	2003	2004	2005	2006	2007	2008	2009	2010	2011	2012	2013	2014	2015	2016	2017	2018	2019	2020	2021	2022	2023	2024	SR	W–L	Win %
Australian Open	A	3R	4R	A	QF	SF	W	QF	QF	F	A	F	QF	1R	F	QF	F	QF	QF	W	2R	A	2 / 18	77–16	83%
French Open	A	A	W	W	W	W	4R	W	W	W	W	W	QF	3R	W	W	W	W	SF	W	A	1R	14 / 19	112–4	97%
Wimbledon	3R	A	2R	F	F	W	A	W	F	2R	1R	4R	2R	A	4R	SF	SF	NH	A	SF	A	A	2 / 15	58–12	83%
US Open	2R	2R	3R	QF	4R	SF	SF	W	F	A	W	A	3R	4R	W	SF	W	A	A	4R	A	A	4 / 16	67–12	85%
Win–loss	3–2	3–2	13–3	17–2	20–3	24–2	15–2	25–1	23–3	14–2	14–1	16–2	11–4	5–2	23–2	21–3	24–2	11–1	9–2	22–1	1–1	0–1	22 / 68	314–44	88%

Year–End Championships performance timeline

Tournament	2001	2002	2003	2004	2005	2006	2007	2008	2009	2010	2011	2012	2013	2014	2015	2016	2017	2018	2019	2020	2021	2022	2023	2024	SR	W–L	Win %
ATP Finals	Did not qualify				A	SF	SF	A	RR	F	RR	A	F	A	SF	A	RR	A	RR	SF	DNQ	RR	Did not qualify		0 / 11	21–18	54%

Olympic gold medal matches

Singles: 1 (1 Gold medal)

Result	Year	Tournament	Surface	Opponent	Score
Win	2008	Summer Olympics (Beijing)	Hard	Fernando González	6–3, 7–6(7–2), 6–3

Doubles: 1 (1 Gold medal)

Result	Year	Tournament	Surface	Partner	Opponents	Score
Win	2016	Summer Olympics (Rio)	Hard	Marc López	Florin Mergea Horia Tecău	6–2, 3–6, 6–4

Records

Main article: List of career achievements by Rafael Nadal

All-time tournament records

Tournament	Since	Record accomplished	Players matched
Grand Slam tournaments	1925	Career Golden Slam Winning all 4 majors and the Olympic gold medal in singles	Andre Agassi Novak Djokovic
		Career Golden Slam + Olympic gold medal in doubles	Stands alone
	1978	Surface Slam Winning majors on 3 different surfaces in a calendar year (2010)	Novak Djokovic
	1877	14 singles titles at one major – French Open	Stands alone
		14 finals contested at one major – French Open	Stands alone
		112 match wins at one major – French Open	Stands alone
	1925	112 match wins at clay court majors	Stands alone
		96,6% match-winning percentage at clay court majors	Stands alone
		4 French–US title doubles (2010, 2013, 2017, 2019)	Stands alone
	1877	15 years winning 1+ title (2005–2014, 2017–2020, 2022)	Stands alone
		10 consecutive years winning 1+ title (2005–2014)	Stands alone
		10 title defences (2006–08, 2011–14, 2018–2020)	Roger Federer
		10 title defences at one major – French Open	Stands alone
		4 titles without losing a set	Stands alone
		4 titles without losing a set at one major – French Open	Stands alone
		3+ titles in 3 separate decades (2000s – 6, 2010s – 13, 2020s – 3)	Stands alone
		2+ titles in 3 separate decades	Stands alone
		Won the same major twice in 3 separate decades – French Open	Stands alone
		Longest Grand Slam final by duration (5 hours 53 minutes)	Novak Djokovic
French Open	1891	14 men's singles titles	Stands alone
		14 finals overall (2005–08, 2010–14, 2017–19, 2020, 2022)	Stands alone
		5 consecutive titles (2010–14)	Stands alone
		10 title defences (2006–08, 2011–14, 2018–2020)	Stands alone
		4 titles without dropping a set (2008, 2010, 2017, 2020)	Stands alone
		112 match wins	Stands alone
		39 match win streak (2010–15)	Stands alone
		97.4% match-winning percentage	Stands alone
		2+ titles in 3 separate decades (2000s – 4, 2010s – 8, 2020s – 2)	Stands alone
		1+ title in 3 separate decades	Stands alone
Australian Open	1905	Longest final by duration (5 hours 53 minutes)	Novak Djokovic
All Tournaments / ATP Tour	2009	Clay Slam Winning Monte Carlo, Madrid, Rome, and French Open in a calendar year (2010)	Stands alone
	1899	Summer Slam Winning Canada, Cincinnati, and US Open in a calendar year (2013)	Patrick Rafter Andy Roddick
	1877	984 outdoor match wins	Stands alone
		58 outdoor Big Titles	Novak Djokovic
		40 clay-court Big Titles	Stands alone
	1973	23 match wins against world No. 1 players	Stands alone
		912 consecutive weeks in the Top 10	Stands alone
		18 consecutive years in the Top 10	Stands alone
ATP Finals	1970	16 consecutive years qualifying for the ATP Finals (2005–2020)	Stands alone
ATP Masters 1000	1990	11 titles won at a single tournament – Monte Carlo	Stands alone
		12 finals contested at a single tournament – Monte Carlo and Rome	Novak Djokovic
		8 consecutive titles won at a single tournament – Monte Carlo (2005–2012)	Stands alone
		26 clay court titles overall	Stands alone
		9 title defences at a single tournament – Monte Carlo	Stands alone
		10+ titles at two tournaments – Monte Carlo and Rome	Stands alone
		4 consecutive titles in a season (2013)	Novak Djokovic
		7 years winning 3+ titles (2005–2018)	Stands alone
		15 years winning 1+ title (2005–2021)	Stands alone
		10 consecutive years winning 1+ title (2005–2014)	Stands alone
		73 match wins at a single tournament – Monte Carlo	Stands alone
		46 consecutive match wins at a single tournament – Monte Carlo (2005–2013)	Stands alone
		79 matches played at a single tournament – Monte Carlo	Roger Federer
		20+ finals reached on two different surfaces (hard – 20, clay – 33)	Stands alone
		76 semifinals	Stands alone
		99 quarterfinals	Stands alone
		21 consecutive quarterfinals (2008–2010)	Stands alone
		410 match wins	Stands alone
		500 matches played	Stands alone
		82.00% match-winning percentage	Stands alone
ATP 500 Series	1990	12 titles won at a single tournament – Barcelona	Stands alone
		15 titles won without losing a set	Stands alone
		14 consecutive years winning 1+ title (2005–2018)	Stands alone
		66 match wins at a single tournament – Barcelona	Stands alone
		41 consecutive match wins at a single tournament – Barcelona	Stands alone
		70 matches played at a single tournament – Barcelona	Stands alone
Monte Carlo Masters	1897	11 men's singles titles	Stands alone
		12 finals overall (2005–2013, 2016–18)	Stands alone
		8 consecutive titles (2005–2012)	Stands alone
		9 consecutive finals (2005–2013)	Stands alone
		5 titles without dropping a set (2007–08, 2010, 2012, 2018)	Stands alone
		73 matches wins (2005–2021)	Stands alone
		46 match win streak (2005–2013)	Stands alone
		79 matches played (2005–2021)	Stands alone
		17 editions played (2003–2021)	Fabrice Santoro
Barcelona Open	1953	12 men's singles titles	Stands alone
		12 finals overall (2005–09, 2011–13, 2016–18, 2021)	Stands alone
		5 consecutive titles (2005–09)	Stands alone
		9 titles without dropping a set (2005, 2007, 2009, 2011–13, 2016–18)	Stands alone
		3 three-peats (2005–09, 2011–13, 2016–18)	Stands alone
Italian Open	1930	10 men's singles titles	Stands alone
		12 finals overall (2005–07, 2009–2014, 2018–19, 2021)	Novak Djokovic
		3 consecutive titles (2005–07)	Stands alone
		6 consecutive finals (2009–2014)	Stands alone
		69 match wins (2005–2022)	Stands alone
		17 consecutive match wins (2005–07)	Stands alone
		77 matches played (2005–2022)	Stands alone
Madrid Open	2002	5 men's singles titles	Stands alone
		8 finals overall (2005, 2009–2011, 2013–15, 2017)	Stands alone
		2 consecutive titles (2013–14)	Stands alone
		3 consecutive finals (2009–2011 & 2013–15)	Stands alone
Mexican Open	1993	4 men's singles titles	David Ferrer Thomas Muster
		5 finals overall (2005, 2013, 2017, 2020, 2022)	David Ferrer
		4 titles without dropping a set (2005, 2013, 2020, 2022)	Stands alone

Open Era records

• These records were attained in the Open Era of tennis.
• Records in bold indicate peer-less achievements.
• Records in italics are currently active streaks.
• ^ Denotes consecutive streak.

Time span	Selected Grand Slam tournament records	Players matched	Ref.
2005 French Open – 2010 US Open	Career Golden Slam	Andre Agassi Novak Djokovic
2005 French Open – 2010 US Open	Youngest to achieve a Career Golden Slam (24)	Stands alone
	Youngest to achieve a Career Grand Slam (24)	Stands alone
2010 French Open – 2010 US Open	Surface Slam	Novak Djokovic
	Simultaneous holder of majors on clay, grass, and hard courts	Novak Djokovic
2008 French Open – 2008 Wimbledon, 2010 French Open – 2010 Wimbledon	Channel Slam Winning French Open and Wimbledon consecutively in a calendar year	Rod Laver Björn Borg Roger Federer Novak Djokovic Carlos Alcaraz
2008 French Open – 2008 Summer Olympics	Simultaneous holder of Olympic gold medal in singles and majors on clay and grass courts	Stands alone
2010 French Open — 2018 French Open	16 semifinals won spanning non-consecutive tournaments	Stands alone
2007 French Open – 2020 French Open	8 major finals reached without losing a set	Stands alone
2011 Wimbledon – 2012 Australian Open	3 consecutive runners-up finishes at majors	Stands alone
2005 French Open – 2022 French Open	Longest span between titles (16 years 11 months 30 days)	Stands alone
	Longest span between finals contested (16 years 11 months 30 days)	Stands alone

Time span	Grand Slam tournaments	Records at each Grand Slam tournament	Players matched	Ref.
2009–2022	Australian Open	Longest gap between titles (13 years)	Stands alone
2022		Won final from two sets down	Jannik Sinner
2012		Longest final by duration (5 hours 53 minutes)	Novak Djokovic
2005–2022	French Open	14 titles overall	Stands alone
		14 finals overall	Stands alone
2010–2014		5 consecutive titles	Stands alone
		5 consecutive finals	Stands alone
2006–08, 2011–14, 2018–2020		10 title defences	Stands alone
2005–2022		15 semifinals overall	Stands alone
2017–2022		6 consecutive semifinals	Novak Djokovic
2005–2024		112 match wins overall	Stands alone
		96.6% (112–4) match winning percentage	Stands alone
2010–2015		39 consecutive match wins	Stands alone
2008, 2010, 2017, 2020		4 titles won without losing a set	Stands alone
2005–2022		2+ titles in three separate decades	Stands alone
		1+ title in three separate decades	Stands alone
2005		Won title on the first attempt	Mats Wilander

Time span	Other records	Players matched	Ref.
2002–2024	84.4% (985–183) outdoor match winning percentage	Stands alone
	985 outdoor match wins	Stands alone
2002–2024	90.5% (484–51) clay court match winning percentage	Stands alone
2005–2007	81 consecutive match wins on a single surface (clay)	Stands alone
2004–2014	52 consecutive semifinal wins on a single surface (clay)	Stands alone
2017–2018	50 consecutive sets won on a single surface (clay)	Stands alone
2005–2013	46 consecutive match wins at a single tournament (Monte Carlo)	Stands alone
2008	32 consecutive match wins across 3 different surfaces	Stands alone
2004–2022	90 outdoor titles	Stands alone
2005–2022	58 outdoor Big Titles	Novak Djokovic
2005–2021	35 outdoor Masters titles	Stands alone
2004–2022	63 clay-court titles	Stands alone
2005–2022	40 clay-court Big Titles	Stands alone
2004–2022	30 titles won without losing a set	Stands alone
	30 outdoor titles won without losing a set	Stands alone
2004–2020	26 clay-court titles won without losing a set	Stands alone
2004–2022	19 consecutive seasons winning 1+ title	Stands alone
2005–2022	18 consecutive seasons winning 2+ titles	Novak Djokovic
	11+ titles at a single tournament (French Open, Barcelona, Monte Carlo)	Stands alone
2005–2012	8 consecutive titles at a single tournament (Monte Carlo)	Stands alone
2004–2006	16 titles won as a teenager	Björn Borg
2004–2022	23 match wins against world No. 1 players	Stands alone
2008–2020	Ranked world No. 1 in three different decades	Stands alone
2005–2023	Most consecutive weeks in the Top 10 (912)	Stands alone
2005–2022	Most year-end Top 2 finishes (13)	Stands alone
	Most year-end Top 4 finishes (15)	Roger Federer Novak Djokovic
	Most year-end Top 5 finishes (16)	Roger Federer Novak Djokovic
	Most year-end Top 10 finishes (18)	Roger Federer
	Most consecutive years in the Top 10 (18)	Stands alone

Professional awards

• ITF World Champion (5): 2008, 2010, 2017, 2019, 2022
• ATP Player of the Year (5): 2008, 2010, 2013, 2017, 2019
• Laureus World Sports Award for Breakthrough of the Year: 2006
• Laureus World Sports Award for Sportsman of the Year (2): 2011, 2021
• Laureus World Sports Award for Comeback of the Year: 2014
• BBC Sports Personality World Sport Star of the Year: 2010
• Davis Cup Most Valuable Player: 2019
• ATP Newcomer of the Year: 2003
• ATP Most Improved Player of the Year: 2005
• Stefan Edberg Sportsmanship Award (5): 2010, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021
• ATP Arthur Ashe Humanitarian of the Year: 2011
• ATP Comeback Player of the Year: 2013
• ATP Fan's Favourite Award: 2022

See also

• List of career achievements by Rafael Nadal
• Forbes list of the world's top-10 highest-paid athletes
• All-time tennis records – Men's singles (since 1877)
• Open Era tennis records – Men's singles (since 1968)
• List of Grand Slam–related tennis records (since 1877)
• List of Grand Slam men's singles champions (since 1877)
• List of Olympic medalists in tennis (since 1896)
• List of ATP Tour top-level tournament singles champions (since 1990)
• Tennis Masters Series singles records and statistics (since 1990)
• ATP Tour records (since 1990)
• List of ATP number 1 ranked singles tennis players (since 1973)
• World number 1 ranked male tennis players (all-time)
• 2016 Summer Olympics national flag bearers
• Sport in Spain
• Tennis in Spain

External links

• Official website
• Rafael Nadal at the Association of Tennis Professionals
• Rafael Nadal at the International Tennis Federation
• Rafael Nadal at the Davis Cup
• Rafael Nadal at Olympedia
• Rafael Nadal at Olympics.com
• Rafael Nadal at the Olympic games winners profile
• Rafael Nadal at ESPN.com
• Rafael Nadal at the Internet Movie Database
• Rafael Nadal on Instagram
• Rafael Nadal on Facebook

Sporting positions
Preceded by Roger Federer Roger Federer Novak Djokovic	World No. 1 August 18, 2008 – July 6, 2009 June 7, 2010 – July 4, 2011 October 7, 2013 – July 7, 2014	Succeeded by Roger Federer Novak Djokovic Novak Djokovic
Preceded by Roger Federer Novak Djokovic	US Open Series Champion 2008 2013	Succeeded by Sam Querrey Milos Raonic
Awards
Preceded by Paul-Henri Mathieu	ATP Newcomer of the Year 2003	Succeeded by Florian Mayer
Preceded by Joachim Johansson	ATP Most Improved Player 2005	Succeeded by Novak Djokovic
Preceded by Roger Federer David Ferrer	Golden Bagel Award 2005 2008, 2009	Succeeded by Roger Federer Robin Söderling
Preceded by Fernando Alonso Rafael Trujillo	Spanish Sportsman of the Year 2006 2008	Succeeded by Rafael Trujillo Xavi
Preceded by Roger Federer Roger Federer	ITF World Champion 2008 2010	Succeeded by Roger Federer Novak Djokovic
Preceded by Roger Federer Roger Federer Novak Djokovic	ATP Player of the Year 2008 2010 2013	Succeeded by Roger Federer Novak Djokovic Novak Djokovic
Preceded by Michael Schumacher	Prince of Asturias Award for Sports 2008	Succeeded by Yelena Isinbayeva
Preceded by Roger Federer	ATP Stefan Edberg Sportsmanship Award 2010	Succeeded by Roger Federer
Preceded by Usain Bolt	BBC Overseas Sports Personality of the Year 2010	Succeeded by Novak Djokovic
Preceded by Usain Bolt Usain Bolt	L'Équipe Champion of Champions 2010 2013	Succeeded by Lionel Messi Renaud Lavillenie
Preceded by Usain Bolt	Laureus World Sportsman of the Year 2011	Succeeded by Novak Djokovic
Preceded by Roger Federer Novak Djokovic	Best Male Tennis Player ESPY Award 2011 2014	Succeeded by Novak Djokovic Novak Djokovic
Preceded by Rohan Bopanna & Aisam-ul-Haq Qureshi	Arthur Ashe Humanitarian of the Year 2011	Succeeded by Novak Djokovic
Preceded by Tommy Haas	ATP Comeback Player of the Year 2013	Succeeded by David Goffin
Preceded by Félix Sánchez	Laureus World Comeback of the Year 2014	Succeeded by Schalk Burger
Olympic Games
Preceded by Pau Gasol	Flagbearer for Spain Rio de Janeiro 2016	Succeeded by Incumbent