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|image=[[Image:Rafael Nadal – Practice Court.jpg|250px|Nadal at the 2008 Western & Southern Financial Group Masters in Mason, Ohio]]
|image=[[Image:Rafael Nadal – Practice Court.jpg|250px|Nadal at the 2008 Western & Southern Financial Group Masters in Mason, Ohio]]
|nickname= ''Rafa'', ''Gladiator'', ''The King of Clay'', ''The Bull''
|nickname= ''Rafa'', ''Gladiator'', ''The King of Clay'', ''The Bull''
|country= Spain
|country= {{ESP}}
|residence= [[Manacor]], [[Majorca]]
|residence= [[Manacor]], [[Majorca]]
|datebirth= {{birth date and age|mf=yes|1986|6|3}}
|datebirth= {{birth date and age|mf=yes|1986|6|3}}

Revision as of 16:03, 12 October 2008

Rafael Nadal
Nadal at the 2008 Western & Southern Financial Group Masters in Mason, Ohio
Country (sports) Spain
ResidenceManacor, Majorca
Height1.85 m (6 ft 1 in)
Turned pro2001
PlaysLeft-handed; two-handed backhand
Prize moneyUS$20,566,948
Singles
Career record330 - 75
Career titles31
Highest rankingNo. 1 (August 18, 2008)
Current rankingNo.1 (August 18, 2008)
Grand Slam singles results
Australian OpenSF (2008)
French OpenW (2005, 2006, 2007, 2008)
WimbledonW (2008)
US OpenSF (2008)
Other tournaments
Tour FinalsSF (2006, 2007)
Olympic Games Gold medal (2008)
Doubles
Career record65–45
Career titles4
Highest rankingNo. 26 (August 8, 2005)
Last updated on: September 8, 2008.
Olympic medal record
Representing  Spain
Tennis
Gold medal – first place 2008 Beijing Men's singles

Template:Spanish name 2

Rafael Nadal Parera (IPA: [rafaˈel naˈðal]) (born June 3, 1986) is a Spanish professional tennis player who has been ranked World No. 1 since August 18, 2008.

Nadal has won five Grand Slam singles titles and the 2008 Olympic gold medal. He has so far captured four consecutive French Opens from 2005 through 2008 and Wimbledon in 2008. As only the second Spaniard to have won Wimbledon, he is also the only man other than Björn Borg to have won four consecutive French Open titles. Adding to this, Nadal is the only tennis player in the history of the modern game to win the French Open, The Queen's Club Championships on grass (beginning the next day), and Wimbledon. He is currently the only winner of an Olympic Gold medal in the men's tennis singles, while being a top-five men's tennis player.

For much of his career, Nadal has had a rivalry with Roger Federer. He was ranked World No. 2 behind Federer for a record 160 weeks before earning the top spot.[1] Nadal has won 12 of their 18 singles matches, including four of their six Grand Slam finals.[2]

Nadal has been especially successful on clay courts. He has a 22–1 record in clay court tournament finals[3] and is undefeated in 43 best-of-five-set matches on clay.[citation needed] In each of the last four years, he has won both the French Open and two clay court Masters Series tournaments. He also owns the longest single-surface winning streak in the open era, having won 81 consecutive matches on clay from April 2005 to May 2007.[4] As a result, some tennis critics and top players already regard him as the greatest clay-court player of all time.[5] [6] [7]

In 2008, he was given the Prince of Asturias Award for sports.[8]

Family and early life

Rafael Nadal was born in Manacor, Majorca to Sebastián Nadal and Ana María Parera. He has a younger sister named María Isabel. His uncle, Miguel Ángel, is a retired professional football player, having played for RCD Mallorca, FC Barcelona, and the Spanish national team.[9] He is an avid supporter of Real Madrid.[10] His other uncle, Toni, himself a professional tennis player, introduced Rafael to tennis as a 3 year-old boy and has been coaching him ever since.[11] Toni has also stated that Rafael had a natural talent playing tennis while preferring to play football.[12] By the time Rafael was five, he was going to the tennis club twice a week to play and at eight years of age, also a promising striker in the local football team, he won the regional tennis championships for under-12s. By the time Rafael was 12 he had won the Spanish and European tennis titles in his age group and was playing either tennis or football all the time. Then in stepped the third of the three brothers, Rafael's father, Sebastian. He forced Rafael to choose between football and tennis so that his school work would not suffer. When Rafael was 14 years old, the Spanish tennis federation requested that he leave Majorca and move to Barcelona to continue his tennis progression and training. Rafael's parents and uncles turned down these requests, which resulted in Rafael receiving less financial support to aid his development. Sebastian covered these costs himself. By the age of 16, Rafael was ranked in the world's top 50 players.

While Rafael's upbringing and early years are largely kept private, he has stated growing up his passions were football, tennis, and fishing.[12]

Nadal has been dating María Francesca Perelló,[13] also from Majorca, for three years as of 2008.[14]

Career

Early years

When Nadal was very young, his coach and uncle, Toni Nadal, taught him to play left-handed even though he is naturally right-handed. Toni reasoned that Rafael's two-handed backhand would benefit from a strong right arm. [15]

Nadal was 12 when he decided to pursue a career in tennis instead of football.[9] Toni was his primary coach, but he also trained at Nick Bollettieri's tennis camp in Florida for portions of two summers in his early teens. In May 2001, he defeated Grand Slam champion Pat Cash in a clay-court exhibition match.[9]

2002–2004

In 2002, Nadal won his first ATP match, defeating Ramon Delgado in Majorca. He became the ninth player in the open era to win an ATP match before the age of 16.[16]

In 2003, Nadal won two Challenger titles and finished the year in the top 50. He is the second-youngest man to be ranked this high. At his Wimbledon debut, Nadal became the youngest man to reach the third round since Boris Becker in 1984.[17]

In 2004, Nadal played his first match against world #1 Roger Federer at the Miami Masters. Nadal won the match in straight sets. He then missed most of the clay-court season, including the French Open, due to a stress fracture in his left ankle.[9]

2005

The 2005 season was a highly successful one for Nadal, as he ascended to #2 in the rankings on 25 July, a position he subsequently held for a record 160 consecutive weeks. He won 11 titles (8 on clay, 3 on hard), tying Roger Federer for the season.

He began the year with hard-fought losses to Lleyton Hewitt at the Australian Open and Federer in the Miami Masters final. Both were considered to be breakthrough performances for Nadal.[18] [19]

He then dominated the spring clay court season by winning 24 consecutive matches (a record for teenage men in the open era).[20] He beat 2004 French Open finalist Guillermo Coria in the finals of both the Monte Carlo Masters and the Rome Masters, after which Coria conceded that Nadal was the best clay court player.[21] Nadal then made his debut at the French Open and lived up to many analysts' predictions by winning his first Grand Slam singles title (Nadal was the first man to win on a debut appearance at the French since Mats Wilander in 1982).[11] En route to the title, he defeated Federer in the semi-finals, beginning a streak of four consecutive wins over his budding rival at Roland Garros. Each of these victories has prevented Federer from achieving a Career Grand Slam.

Nadal proceeded to win Masters Series events on the hard courts of Canada and Madrid, thus capturing 4 Masters titles during the year. This a single-season record he shares with Federer. However, Nadal's performances at the other Grand Slam tournaments were more indifferent, as he suffered by that time shock losses in rounds two and three of Wimbledon and the U.S. Open respectively.[22] [23] A foot injury near the end of the year caused him to miss the Tennis Masters Cup and the start of the 2006 season.[24]

Nadal won the Golden Bagel Award that year with twelve 6-0 sets in the year.

2006

Nadal at the 2006 French Open

Nadal missed the Australian Open because of a foot injury. In February, he lost in the semifinals of the first tournament he played, the Open 13 tournament in Marseille, France. Two weeks later, he handed Roger Federer his first loss of the year in the final of the Dubai Duty Free Men's Open. To complete the spring hard court season, Nadal was upset in the semifinals of the Pacific Life Open in Indian Wells, California and in the second round of the Sony Ericsson Open in Key Biscayne, Florida, both of which were important Masters Series events.

On European clay, Nadal won all four tournaments he entered and 24 consecutive matches. He defeated Federer in the final of the Masters Series Monte Carlo in four sets. The following week, he defeated Tommy Robredo in the final of the Open Sabadell Atlántico tournament in Barcelona. After a one week break from tournament play, Nadal won the Masters Series Internazionali BNL d'Italia in Rome, defeating Federer in a fifth set tiebreaker in the final after Nadal saved two match points. Nadal broke Argentinian Guillermo Vilas's 29-year record of 53 consecutive clay court match victories when he won his first round match at the French Open. Vilas, however, refused to acknowledge Nadal's feat as more impressive than his own because Vilas's winning streak was in a single year.[25] Nadal went on to play Federer in the final of the French Open. The first two sets of the match were hardly competitive as the rivals traded 6–1 sets. Nadal won the third set easily and served for the match in the fourth set before Federer broke him and forced a tiebreaker. Nadal won the tiebreaker and became the first player to defeat Federer in a Grand Slam final.[26]

On grass, Nadal injured his shoulder while playing a quarterfinal match against Lleyton Hewitt at the Artois Championships, played at Queen's Club in London. Nadal was unable to complete the match, which ended his 26-match winning streak. Nadal was seeded second at Wimbledon but was two points from defeat against American qualifier Robert Kendrick in the second round before coming back to win in five sets. In the third round, Nadal defeated World No. 20 Andre Agassi in his last career match at Wimbledon 7–6(5), 6–2, 6–4. Nadal won his next three matches in straight sets, which set up another final with Federer, who had won this tournament the three previous years. Federer won the match in four sets. Nadal and Federer were the only pair of men during the open era who had reached the Wimbledon final after having just played each other in the French Open final.

During the lead up to the US Open, Nadal played only the two Masters Series tournaments in North America. He was upset in the third round of the Rogers Cup in Toronto and the quarterfinals of the Western & Southern Financial Group Masters in Cincinnati, Ohio. Nadal was seeded second at the US Open but lost in the quarterfinals to World No. 54 Mikhail Youzhny of Russia in four sets.

Nadal played only three tournaments the remainder of the year. Joachim Johansson, ranked World No. 690, upset Nadal in the second round of the if... Stockholm Open 6–4, 7–6. The following week, Nadal lost in the quarterfinals of the last Masters Series tournament of the year, the Mutua Madrileña Masters in Madrid. After the tournament, Nadal blamed mental and physical exhaustion for his recent losses.[citation needed] During the round robin stage of the year-ending Tennis Masters Cup, Nadal lost to James Blake but defeated Nikolay Davydenko and Robredo. Because of those two victories, Nadal qualified for the semifinals, where he lost to Federer 6–4, 7–5. This was Nadal's third loss in nine career matches with Federer.

2007

Nadal started the year by playing in six hard court tournaments. He lost in the semifinals and first round of his first two tournaments and then lost in the quarterfinals of the Australian Open to eventual runner-up Fernando Gonzalez. After another quarterfinal loss at the Dubai Tennis Championships, he won the Masters Series Pacific Life Open in Indian Wells, California before Novak Djokovic defeated him in the quarterfinals of the Masters Series Sony Ericsson Open in Key Biscayne, Florida.

He had comparatively more success after returning to Europe to play five clay court tournaments. He won the titles at the Masters Series Monte Carlo, the Open Sabadell Atlántico in Barcelona, and the Masters Series Internazionali BNL d'Italia in Rome before losing to Roger Federer in the final of the Masters Series Hamburg. 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 then rebounded to win the French Open for the third straight year, defeating Federer once again in the final.

Between the tournaments in Barcelona and Rome, Nadal defeated Federer in the "Battle of Surfaces" exhibition match in Majorca, Spain, with the tennis court being half grass and half clay.[27]

Nadal played the Artois Championships at Queen's Club in London for the second consecutive year. As in 2006, Nadal was upset in the quarterfinals. Nadal then won consecutive five-set matches during the third and fourth rounds of Wimbledon before losing to Federer in the five-set final. This was Federer's first five-set match at Wimbledon since 2001.[28]

In July, Nadal won the clay court Mercedes Cup in Stuttgart, which proved to be his last title of the year. He played three important tournaments during the North American summer hard court season. He was a semifinalist at the Masters Series Rogers Cup in Montreal before losing his first match at the Western & Southern Financial Group Masters in Cincinnati, Ohio. He was the second-seeded player at the US Open but was defeated in the fourth round by World No. 15 David Ferrer.

After a month-long break from tournament tennis, Nadal played the Mutua Madrileña Masters in Madrid and the BNP Paribas Masters in Paris. David Nalbandian upset him in the quarterfinals and final of those tournaments. To end the year, Nadal won two of his three round robin matches to advance to the semifinals of the Tennis Masters Cup in Shanghai, where Federer defeated him 6–4, 6–1.

During the second half of the year, Nadal battled a knee injury suffered during the Wimbledon final. In addition, there were rumors at the end of the year that the foot injury he suffered during 2005 caused long term damage, which were given credence by coach Toni Nadal's claim that the problem was "serious". Nadal and his spokesman strongly denied this, however, with Nadal himself calling the story "totally false".[29]

2008

Nadal at the 2008 Pacific Life Open
Nadal at the 2008 Western & Southern Financial Group Masters tournament in Cincinnati, Ohio

As of September 24, Nadal has a 77–9 win-loss record and has won eight singles titles, including the French Open, Wimbledon, and the Olympic Games. He also had a career-best 32 match winning streak during which he captured five titles and secured the World No. 1 ranking for the first time.

Nadal began the year in India where he was the runner-up to Mikhail Youzhny at the Chennai Open. Nadal then reached the semifinals of the Australian Open for the first time. He also reached the final of the Sony Ericsson Open in Key Biscayne, Florida for the second time.

During the spring clay court season, Nadal won four singles titles and defeated Roger Federer in three finals. He beat Federer at the Masters Series Monte Carlo for the third straight year, capturing his open era record fourth consecutive title there. He won in straight sets, despite Federer holding a 4-0 lead in the second set.[30] He then won his fourth consecutive title at the Open Sabadell Atlantico tournament in Barcelona. A few weeks later, Nadal won his first title at the Masters Series Hamburg, defeating Federer in the three-set final. He then won the French Open, becoming only the fifth man in the open era to win a Grand Slam singles title without losing a set.[31] He defeated Federer in the final for the third straight year, but this was the most lopsided of all their matches, as Nadal only lost four games and gave Federer his first bagel since 1999.[30] This was Nadal's fourth consecutive French title, tying Björn Borg's all-time record. Nadal became fourth player of open era to win the same Grand Slam for 4 consecutive years, after Borg, Sampras and Federer.

He then played Federer in the final of Wimbledon for the third consecutive year, in the most anticipated match of their rivalry.[32] [33] Nadal entered the final on a 23 match winning streak, including his first career grass court title at the Artois Championships, staged at Queen's Club in London prior to Wimbledon. Federer was also on a roll, having won his record fifth grass court title at the Gerry Weber Open in Halle without facing a break point and then reaching the Wimbledon final without losing a set. Unlike their previous two Wimbledon finals, though, Federer was not the prohibitive favorite, and many analysts picked Nadal to win.[33] [34] They played the longest final 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 long-time tennis critics even calling it the greatest match in tennis history.[35] [36] [37] [38] [39] By winning his first Wimbledon title, Nadal became only the third man in the open era to win both the French Open and Wimbledon in the same year as well as the second Spaniard to win Wimbledon. He also ended Federer's record streak of five consecutive Wimbledon titles and 65 straight wins on grass courts.

After Wimbledon, Nadal extended his winning streak to a career-best 32 matches. He won his second Rogers Cup title in Toronto and then made it into the semifinals of the Western & Southern Financial Group Masters in Cincinnati, Ohio. As a result, Nadal clinched the US Open Series and, combined with Federer's early round losses in both of those tournaments, finally earned Nadal the World No. 1 ranking on August 18, officially ending Federer's record four-and-a-half year reign at the top.

At the 2008 Beijing Olympics, Nadal defeated Novak Djokovic of Serbia in the semifinals 6–4, 1–6, 6–4 and Fernando González of Chile in the final to win his first Olympic gold medal. Nadal became the first male player ranked in the top five to win the gold medal.[40]

At the US Open, Nadal was the top-seeded player for the first time at a Grand Slam tournament. He did not lose a set during his first three matches, defeating qualifiers in the first and second rounds and Viktor Troicki in the third round. He then needed four sets to defeat both Sam Querrey in the fourth round and Mardy Fish in the quarterfinals. In the semifinals, he lost to Andy Murray 6–2, 7–6(5), 4–6, 6–4.

Rivalry with Federer

Main article: Federer-Nadal rivalry

Nadal and Federer have been rivals since 2005, and this rivalry is a significant part of both men's careers:

Playing style

Nadal at the 2006 Cincinnati Masters.

Nadal plays with well-angled topspin heavy strokes, a strong two-handed backhand, fast mobility on the court, and a preference to play from the deep court. Though naturally right-handed, Nadal plays left-handed, and uses his dominant right hand as an anchor for his two-handed backhand. In addition, being naturally right-handed allows him to stay balanced regardless of which foot he puts his weight on, an exceptional talent when one tries to hit the ball after starting a move in the wrong direction. Although, a natural right-hander, Nadal claims he is left footed and that it is difficult for him to play with his right hand.[43] Known for his excellent defense, Nadal hits well on the run and creates many winners from seemingly defensive positions. Because of his extreme athleticism, Nadal tends to go after every shot, even apparent winners from his opponents.[44] Historically, Nadal's playing style has worked best on clay courts, and he was once considered a clay-court specialist. Recent success on other surfaces has helped Nadal shed that label, though he is still considered most dominant on clay.

Nadal uses a full western grip forehand, which allows him to hit heavy, powerful topspin forehands, giving him a bigger margin of error because of the height at which his shot clears the net and the speed at which the ball drops due to the topspin that is applied to the ball. Nadal's heavy topspin makes the ball bounce up high in the air for his opponent, making it difficult to return. These types of shots tend to be returned short in length, but the spin kicks it up so high that this kind of play is sufficient on clay.

For many years, Nadal's serve was not considered one of his strengths. However, it has become more of a weapon lately; Nadal currently possesses a highly effective first serve and a moderate second serve. Usually employing a hard lefty slice towards most of his opponents' backhands (right-handed opponents), his serve can be relied upon for consistency and also for some short-point wins such as aces and bad service-returns.[44]

Another one of Nadal's strengths is the mental aspect of his tennis game. His ability to come back from behind in a match greatly assists him. He also has good footwork, which helps him to prepare for tennis strokes and get around the court efficiently. In addition, he can put away short balls and comes to the net quite often. Rafael Nadal has an under-emphasized net game. He is able to volley deep, but his main strength at the net is his touch and feel. Nadal is good at angling volleys away from his opponents and can hit drop volleys well after running extremely quickly up to the net to return any drop shot made by his opponent.

Equipment

Nadal uses a Babolat AeroPro Drive racquet without the cortex system. However, his racquet has the paintjob of the Aero Pro Drive with Cortex, in order to commercialize and promote the current model that Babolat sells. This model's handle is (L2 grip= 4 1/4)) with no replacement grip, instead Nadal wraps 2 over grips, and the racquet strung between 53 and 55 pounds with Duralast 15L strings, although he promotes Babolat's Pro Hurricane Tour strings. His clothing sponsor is Nike and he is known for his unconventional wear, turning up in sleeveless tops and Capri pants in a variety of colours. He also wears the Nike Air Max Breathe Cage II shoes[45] which have been customized for him with the famous "Vamos Rafa" slogan written on the back of them.[46] Currently, his shoes display his nickname "Rafa" on one shoe and a logo specifically designed by Nike featuring a stylistic bull head on the other.

Career statistics

Grand Slam singles finals (7)

Wins (5)

Year Championship Opponent in Final Score in Final
2005 French Open Argentina Mariano Puerta 6–7(6), 6–3, 6–1, 7–5
2006 French Open (2) Switzerland Roger Federer 1–6, 6–1, 6–4, 7–6(4)
2007 French Open (3) Switzerland Roger Federer 6–3, 4–6, 6–3, 6–4
2008 French Open (4) Switzerland Roger Federer 6–1, 6–3, 6–0
2008 Wimbledon Switzerland Roger Federer 6–4, 6–4, 6–7(5), 6–7(8), 9–7

Runner-ups (2)

Year Championship Opponent in Final Score in Final
2006 Wimbledon Switzerland Roger Federer 6–0, 7–6(5), 6–7(2), 6–3
2007 Wimbledon (2) Switzerland Roger Federer 7–6(7), 4–6, 7–6(3), 2–6, 6–2

ATP Masters Series singles finals (16)

Wins (12)

Year Tournament Surface Opponent in Final Score in Final
2005 Monte Carlo Clay Argentina Guillermo Coria 6–3, 6–1, 0–6, 7–5
2005 Rome Clay Argentina Guillermo Coria 6–4, 3–6, 6–3, 4–6, 7–6(6)
2005 Montréal (Canada) Hard United States Andre Agassi 6–3, 4–6, 6–2
2005 Madrid Hard (i) Croatia Ivan Ljubicic 3–6, 2–6, 6–3, 6–4, 7–6(3)
2006 Monte Carlo (2) Clay Switzerland Roger Federer 6–2, 6–7(2), 6–3, 7–6(5)
2006 Rome (2) Clay Switzerland Roger Federer 6–7(0), 7–6(5), 6–4, 2–6, 7–6(5)
2007 Indian Wells Hard Serbia Novak Djokovic 6–2, 7–5
2007 Monte Carlo (3) Clay Switzerland Roger Federer 6–4, 6–4
2007 Rome (3) Clay Chile Fernando González 6–2, 6–2
2008 Monte Carlo (4) Clay Switzerland Roger Federer 7–5, 7–5
2008 Hamburg Clay Switzerland Roger Federer 7–5, 6–7(3), 6–3
2008 Toronto (Canada) (2) Hard Germany Nicolas Kiefer 6–3, 6–2

Runner-ups (4)

Year Tournament Surface Opponent in Final Score in Final
2005 Miami Hard Switzerland Roger Federer 2–6, 6–7(4), 7–6(5), 6–3, 6–1
2007 Hamburg Clay Switzerland Roger Federer 2–6, 6–2, 6–0
2007 Paris Hard (i) Argentina David Nalbandian 6–4, 6–0
2008 Miami (2) Hard Russia Nikolay Davydenko 6–4, 6–2

All finals (46)

Singles (39)

Wins (31)
Legend
Grand Slam Tournaments (5)
Tennis Masters Cup (0)
Olympic Gold (1)
ATP Masters Series (12)
ATP Tour (13)
Titles by Surface
Hard (7)
Clay (22)
Grass (2)
Carpet (0)
No. Date Tournament, Location Surface Opponent in Final Score in Final
1. August 15, 2004 Sopot, Poland Clay Argentina José Acasuso 6–3, 6–4
2. February 20, 2005 Costa do Sauípe, Brasil Clay Spain Alberto Martín 6–0, 6–7(2), 6–1
3. February 27, 2005 Acapulco, Mexico Clay Spain Albert Montañés 6–1, 6–0
4. April 17, 2005 Masters Series Monte Carlo, Monaco Clay Argentina Guillermo Coria 6–3, 6–1, 0–6, 7–5
5. April 24, 2005 Barcelona, Spain Clay Spain Juan Carlos Ferrero 6–1, 7–6(4), 6–3
6. May 8, 2005 Masters Series Rome, Italy Clay Argentina Guillermo Coria 6–4, 3–6, 6–3, 4–6, 7–6(6)
7. June 5, 2005 French Open, Paris, France Clay Argentina Mariano Puerta 6–7(6), 6–3, 6–1, 7–5
8. July 10, 2005 Båstad, Sweden Clay Czech Republic Tomáš Berdych 2–6, 6–2, 6–4
9. July 24, 2005 Stuttgart, Germany Clay Argentina Gastón Gaudio 6–3, 6–3, 6–4
10. August 14, 2005 Masters Series Montréal (Canada) Hard United States Andre Agassi 6–3, 4–6, 6–2
11. September 18, 2005 Beijing, China Hard Argentina Guillermo Coria 5–7, 6–1, 6–2
12. October 23, 2005 Master Series Madrid, Spain Hard (i) Croatia Ivan Ljubicic 3–6, 2–6, 6–3, 6–4, 7–6(3)
13. March 4, 2006 Dubai, United Arab Emirates Hard Switzerland Roger Federer 2–6, 6–4, 6–4
14. April 23, 2006 Masters Series Monte Carlo, Monaco Clay Switzerland Roger Federer 6–2, 6–7(2), 6–3, 7–6(5)
15. April 30, 2006 Barcelona, Spain Clay Spain Tommy Robredo 6–4, 6–4, 6–0
16. May 14, 2006 Masters Series Rome, Italy Clay Switzerland Roger Federer 6–7(0), 7–6(5), 6–4, 2–6, 7–6(5)
17. June 11, 2006 French Open, Paris, France Clay Switzerland Roger Federer 1–6, 6–1, 6–4, 7–6(4)
18. March 18, 2007 Masters Series Indian Wells, USA Hard Serbia Novak Djokovic 6–2, 7–5
19. April 22, 2007 Masters Series Monte Carlo, Monaco Clay Switzerland Roger Federer 6–4, 6–4
20. April 29, 2007 Barcelona, Spain Clay Argentina Guillermo Cañas 6–3, 6–4
21. May 13, 2007 Masters Series Rome, Italy Clay Chile Fernando González 6–2, 6–2
22. June 10, 2007 French Open, Paris, France Clay Switzerland Roger Federer 6–3, 4–6, 6–3, 6–4
23. July 22, 2007 Stuttgart, Germany Clay Switzerland Stanislas Wawrinka 6–4, 7–5
24. April 27, 2008 Masters Series Monte Carlo, Monaco Clay Switzerland Roger Federer 7–5, 7–5
25. May 4, 2008 Barcelona, Spain Clay Spain David Ferrer 6–1, 4–6, 6–1
26. May 18, 2008 Masters Series Hamburg, Germany Clay Switzerland Roger Federer 7–5, 6–7(3), 6–3
27. June 8, 2008 French Open, Paris, France Clay Switzerland Roger Federer 6–1, 6–3, 6–0
28. June 15, 2008 London Queen's Club, United Kingdom Grass Serbia Novak Djokovic 7–6(6), 7–5
29. July 6, 2008 Wimbledon, London, United Kingdom Grass Switzerland Roger Federer 6–4, 6–4, 6–7(5), 6–7(8), 9–7
30. July 27, 2008 Masters Series Toronto (Canada) Hard Germany Nicolas Kiefer 6–3, 6–2
31. August 17, 2008 Beijing 2008 Summer Olympics, China Hard Chile Fernando González 6–3, 7–6(2), 6–3
Runner-ups (8)
Legend
Grand Slam Tournaments (2)
Tennis Masters Cup (0)
ATP Masters Series (4)
ATP Tour (2)
Runner-ups by Surface
Hard (5)
Clay (1)
Grass (2)
Carpet (0)
No. Date Tournament Surface Opponent in Final Score in Final
1. January 18, 2004 Auckland, Australia Hard Slovakia Dominik Hrbatý 4–6, 6–2, 7–5
2. April 3, 2005 Masters Series Miami, USA Hard Switzerland Roger Federer 2–6, 6–7(4), 7–6(5), 6–3, 6–1
3. July 9, 2006 Wimbledon, London, United Kingdom Grass Switzerland Roger Federer 6–0, 7–6(5), 6–7(2), 6–3
4. May 20, 2007 Masters Series Hamburg, Germany Clay Switzerland Roger Federer 2–6, 6–2, 6–0
5. July 8, 2007 Wimbledon, London, United Kingdom Grass Switzerland Roger Federer 7–6(7), 4–6, 7–6(3), 2–6, 6–2
6. November 4, 2007 Masters Series Paris, France Hard (i) Argentina David Nalbandian 6–4, 6–0
7. January 6, 2008 Chennai, India Hard Russia Mikhail Youzhny 6–0, 6–1
8. April 6, 2008 Masters Series Miami, USA Hard Russia Nikolay Davydenko 6–4, 6–2

Doubles (7)

Wins (4)
No. Date Tournament Surface Partnering Opponents in the final Score
1. Jul 27, 2003 Croatia Umag, Croatia Clay Spain Álex López Morón Australia Todd Perry
Japan Thomas Shimada 		6–1, 6–3
2. Jan 11, 2004 India Chennai, India Hard Spain Tommy Robredo Israel Jonathan Erlich
Israel Andy Ram 		7–6(3), 4–6, 6–3
3. Jan 9, 2005 Qatar Doha, Qatar Hard Spain Albert Costa Romania Andrei Pavel
Russia Mikhail Youzhny 		6–3, 4–6, 6–3
4. Apr 27, 2008 Monaco Monte Carlo, Monaco Clay Spain Tommy Robredo India Mahesh Bhupathi
The Bahamas Mark Knowles 		6–3, 6–3
Runner-ups (3)
No. Date Tournament Surface Partnering Opponents in the final Score
1. Apr 24, 2005 Spain Barcelona, Spain Clay Spain Feliciano López India Leander Paes
Serbia and Montenegro Nenad Zimonjić 		6–3, 6–3
2. Jan 8, 2007 India Chennai, India Hard Spain Tomeu Salvà Belgium Xavier Malisse
Belgium Dick Norman 		7–6(4), 7–6(4)
3. Apr 30, 2007 Spain Barcelona, Spain Clay Spain Tomeu Salvà Romania Andrei Pavel
Germany Alexander Waske 		6–3, 7–6(1)

(i) = Indoor

Singles performance timeline

Template:Performance timeline legend To prevent confusion and double counting, information in this table is updated only once a tournament or the player's participation in the tournament has concluded. This table is current through Spain's Davis Cup semifinal tie against the United States in Madrid, which ended on September 21, 2008.

Tournament 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 Career SR Career W-L
Grand Slam tournaments
Australian Open A A 3R 4R A QF SF 0 / 4 14–4
French Open A A A W W W W 4 / 4 28–0
Wimbledon A 3R A 2R F F W 1 / 5 22–4
US Open A 2R 2R 3R QF 4R SF 0 / 6 16–6
SR 0 / 0 0 / 2 0 / 2 1 / 4 1 / 3 1 / 4 2 / 4 5 / 19 N/A
Win-Loss 0–0 3–2 3–2 13–3 17–2 20–3 24–2 N/A 80–14
Year-End Championship
Tennis Masters Cup A A A A SF SF 0 / 2 4–4
Olympic Games
Summer Olympics Not Held A Not Held W 1 / 1 6–0
ATP Masters Series
Indian Wells A A 3R A SF W SF 1 / 4 16–3
Miami A A 4R F 2R QF F 0 / 5 14–5
Monte Carlo A 3R A W W W W 4 / 5 24–1
Rome A A A W W W 2R 3 / 4 17–1
Hamburg A 3R A A A F W 1 / 3 11–2
Toronto / Montreal A A 1R W 3R SF W 2 / 5 16–3
Cincinnati A A 1R 1R QF 2R SF 0 / 5 6–5
Madrid A 1R 2R W QF QF 1 / 5 10–4
Paris A LQ A A A F 0 / 1 4–1
ATP Tournaments Played 1 11 18 21 16 18 17 N/A 102
ATP Finals Reached 0 0 2 12 6 9 10 N/A 39
ATP Tournaments Won 0 0 1 11 5 6 8 N/A 31
Hard Win-Loss 0–0 1–2 14–10 28–6 25–10 31–12 41–8 N/A 140–48
Clay Win-Loss 1–1 11–6 14–3 50–2 26–0 31–1 24–1 N/A 157–14
Grass Win-Loss 0–0 2–1 0–0 1–2 8–2 8–2 12–0 N/A 31–7
Carpet Win-Loss 0–0 0–2 2–4 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0 N/A 2–6
Overall Win-Loss 1–1 14–11 30–17 79–10 59–12 70–15 77–9 N/A 330–75
Win (%) 50% 56% 64% 89% 83% 82% 90% N/A 81%
Year End Ranking 200 49 51 2 2 2 N/A N/A
  • Davis Cup and World Team Cup matches are included in the statistics.

ATP Tour career earnings

Year Majors ATP wins Total wins Earnings ($) Money list rank
2002 0 0 0 23,975 345
2003 0 0 0 243,238 87
2004 0 1 1 447,758 50
2005 1 10 11 3,874,751 2
2006 1 4 5 3,746,360 2
2007 1 5 6 5,646,935 2
2008* 2 6 8 6,583,074 1
Career* 5 26 31 20,566,948 8
* As of September 8, 2008.

Davis Cup

Nadal was on Spain's victorious 2004 Davis Cup team.

First round versus the Czech Republic

Quarterfinal versus the Netherlands

Semifinal versus France

Final versus the United States

  • Singles: Nadal defeated Andy Roddick 6–7, 6–2, 7–6, 6–2.

Nadal also played on the Spanish Davis Cup team in 2005, 2006, and 2008.

Challengers and futures finals

Singles wins (8)

Legend
Challengers (2)
Futures (6)
No. Date Tournament Surface Opponent in the final Score
1. Jul 15, 2002 Alicante, Spain Clay Spain Marc Fornell 7–5, 3–6, 6–3
2. Aug 19, 2002 Vigo, Spain Clay Argentina Antonio Pastorino 4–6, 7–6(4), 6–4
3. Sep 23, 2002 Barcelona, Spain Clay Spain Marc Fornell 6–4, 6–3
4. Sep 30, 2002 Barcelona, Spain Clay Spain Guillermo García-López 6–3, 7–6(1)
5. Nov 25, 2002 Gran Canaria, Spain Clay Spain Marc Fornell 6–2, 6–3
6. Dec 2, 2002 Gran Canaria, Spain Hard (i) Germany Florian Mayer 7–6(3), 6–4
7. Mar 31, 2003 Barletta, Italy Clay Spain Albert Portas 6–2, 7–6(2)
8. Aug 4, 2003 Segovia, Spain Hard Czech Republic Tomáš Zíb 6–2, 7–6(1)

Singles runner-ups (4)

Sponsorships

Rafael Nadal is the global ambassador for Kia Motors, and has appeared in Kia's global advertising campaigns in TV and print media. In May 2008, Kia released a video called Nadal vs Alien featuring Rafael Nadal in a tennis match against an alien.[47]

See also

References

  1. ^ It's official: Nadal will pass Federer for No. 1
  2. ^ a b Roger, Rafa to Meet in Record Sixth Grand Slam Final
  3. ^ Tennis.com - Nadal's Numbers: 10 amazing clay stats
  4. ^ Greg Garber (2007-05-20). "ESPN - List of Nadal's 81 straight wins on clay". ESPN. {{cite web}}: Text "2008-08-01" ignored (help)
  5. ^ "ESPN – Is Rafael Nadal the best clay-court player ever?".
  6. ^ Tom Perotta - Nadal Appearing Unbeatable on Clay
  7. ^ Peter Bodo - Endgame on Clay
  8. ^ Nadal receives 2008 Prince of Asturias Award
  9. ^ a b c d Clarey, Christopher (2005-06-06). "Rafael Nadal, Barely 19, He's Got Game, Looks and Remarkably Good Manners". New York city Times. Retrieved 2007-02-16. {{cite news}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  10. ^ "BBC – Sportsround meets Rafael Nadal".
  11. ^ a b "Rafael Nadal Official Website". Retrieved 2007-02-16.
  12. ^ a b The Big Interview: Rafael Nadal - Times Online
  13. ^ Rafael Nadal girlfriend Xisca Perello
  14. ^ "Tennis Hotshot Rafael Nadal Has a Secret Girlfriend". People Magazine. 2008-06-23. Retrieved 2008-06-23.
  15. ^ Pages, John (2006-05-02). "PlayStation or on-court, Raging Bull wins". Sun Star. Retrieved 2007-02-16. {{cite news}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help) Also from Nadal's official page, through its "Ask Rafa" service.
  16. ^ Tignor, Stephen (2006-06-20). "Wimbledon 2006: The Duel". Retrieved 2007-02-16.
  17. ^ Clarey, Christopher (2003-06-26). "WIMBLEDON TENNIS : An unusual comfort zone". International Herald Tribune. Retrieved 2007-02-16. {{cite news}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  18. ^ "Brave Hewitt battles past Nadal". BBC Sport. 2005-01-24. Retrieved 2008-08-03.
  19. ^ "Nadal proves to be the real deal". BBC Sport. 2005-04-05. Retrieved 2008-08-03.
  20. ^ "Teen Nadal gives Spain reign over French Open". USA Today.com. 2006-06-05. Retrieved 2008-09-03.
  21. ^ "Nadal triumphant in Monte Carlo". BBC Sport. 2005-04-17. Retrieved 2008-08-03.
  22. ^ Alistair Watkins (2005-04-17). "Nadal suffers shock Muller defeat". BBC Sport. Retrieved 2008-06-23.
  23. ^ "Nadal Inspired Blake ends Nadal hopes". BBC Sport. 2005-08-03. Retrieved 2008-08-03.
  24. ^ Julian Linden (2006-01-06). "Foot injury delays Rafael Nadal's comeback". Rediff.com. Retrieved 2008-09-03.
  25. ^ Garber, Greg (2006-05-31). "With Vilas in stands, Nadal makes history". ESPN.com. Retrieved 2007-04-30. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help); Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  26. ^ Garber, Greg (2006-06-12). "Roger's reign on hold with Nadal's dominance". ESPN.com. Retrieved 2007-03-09. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help); Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  27. ^ "The Battle of Surfaces". Retrieved 2007-04-22.
  28. ^ Caroline Cheese (2007-07-07). "Federer wins historic fifth title". BBC Sport. Retrieved 2008-08-05.
  29. ^ Piers Newbury (2007-11-28). "Federer Nadal plays down foot injury fear". BBC Sport. Retrieved 2008-08-05.
  30. ^ a b ATPtennis.com - Roger & Rafa: The Rivalry
  31. ^ International Herald Tribune (2008-06-09). "Men's Grand Slam Titles Without Losing A Set". Retrieved 2008-08-09.
  32. ^ Federer, Nadal set for Wimbledon showdown
  33. ^ a b Nadal enters Wimbledon final with clear mental edge
  34. ^ Peter Bodo - 5 reasons Nadal will win
  35. ^ a b Bruce Jenkins (2008-07-07). "The Greatest Match Ever". Retrieved 2008-08-07. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  36. ^ a b Richard Alleyne (2008-07-07). "Wimbledon 2008: John McEnroe hails Rafael Nadal victory as greatest final ever". Retrieved 2008-08-07. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  37. ^ a b Jon Wertheim - Without a doubt, it's the greatest
  38. ^ a b c International Herald Tribune, Associated Press (2008-07-07). "Federer-Nadal rivalry as good as it gets". Retrieved 2008-08-07. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  39. ^ Alistair Magowan (2008-07-07). "Roger v Rafa - the best final ever?". Retrieved 2008-08-07. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  40. ^ Nadal wins Olympic gold over Gonzalez
  41. ^ Paul Weaver (2008-07-07). "Move over McEnroe and Borg, this one will run and run in the memory". Retrieved 2008-08-07. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  42. ^ Martin Flanagan (2008-07-12). "Federer v Nadal as good as sport gets". Retrieved 2008-08-07. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  43. ^ "Rafael Nadal Blog". Retrieved 2008-09-09.
  44. ^ a b Cooper, Jeff. "Rafael Nadal – Game Profile". Retrieved 2007-07-30. {{cite news}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  45. ^ "Nike Air Max Breathe Cage". Retrieved 2007-09-05.
  46. ^ "Nadal's trainers photo". Retrieved 2007-03-28.
  47. ^ Kia Nadal versus Alien Video

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Rafael Nadal.
Sporting positions
Preceded by World No. 1
August 18, 2008 - 		Succeeded by
incumbent
Awards
Preceded by Olympic Champion
2008 		Succeeded by
Reigning champion
Preceded by ATP Newcomer of the Year
2003 		Succeeded by
Preceded by ATP Most Improved Player
2005 		Succeeded by
Preceded by Laureus World Newcomer of the Year
2006 		Succeeded by


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