Nadal, Rafael (1986-…), a Spanish tennis star, became one of the most dominant players of the early 2000’s. Nadal is known as a fierce competitor from the back of the court who hits with tremendous topspin off both his forehand and backhand. Nadal has won 22 career grand slam tournaments. He is one of only six players to win 20 or more grand slam singles titles. The grand slam consists of the Australian Open, French Open, Wimbledon, and US Open tournaments.
Nadal first established himself as a clay court specialist, winning the French Open from 2005 through 2008, from 2010 through 2014, from 2017 through 2020, and in 2022. The tournament is played on a slow clay surface. Nadal’s total of 14 French Open singles titles is a record for both male and female players. His 5 straight victories from 2010 through 2014 are also a French Open record for both men and women. In 2017, Nadal won his 50th clay court title, breaking the career record of 49 clay-court titles set by Guillermo Vilas of Argentina.
Nadal won the 2008 Wimbledon championship, played on a faster grass surface. He defeated Roger Federer in five sets in one of the greatest finals matches in tennis history. Federer had won the previous five Wimbledon tournaments. Nadal won his second Wimbledon title and his first US Open championship in 2010. He won the US Open again in 2013, 2017, and 2019. Nadal won the Australian Open in 2009 and 2022.
Nadal was born on June 3, 1986, in Manacor on the island of Majorca. He turned professional in 2001. He was ranked the number-two men’s singles player in the world from 2005 until 2008, when he passed Federer to become number one. Nadal held the number-one ranking until July 2009 and regained it in June 2010. Since then, Nadal has often held the number-one or number-two ranking. Nadal won the gold medal in men’s singles at the 2008 Summer Olympic Games. He won two singles matches to lead Spain to a 3-1 victory over Argentina in the 2011 Davis Cup finals. Nadal and his partner, Marc López, won the men’s doubles gold medal at the 2016 Summer Olympic Games.
