Nobody in the history of men’s tennis has won more Grand Slam titles than Rafael Nadal. The legendary Spanish player is the proud owner of a notable entry in the sporting record books, with the intention being to ensure that his achievements stand the test of time.
That will be no easy feat, with a certain Novak Djokovic breathing down his neck and the clock ticking on one of the most distinguished of professional playing careers.
Time is still on his side for now, though, when it comes to enhancing an iconic standing in tennis circles, with no sign of a racket being hung up just yet. In 2023, more opportunities to claim prestigious prizes will present themselves.
Ability
It never gets old ?#RolandGarros | @RafaelNadal pic.twitter.com/QrMdgRSq06
— Roland-Garros (@rolandgarros) June 5, 2022
In tennis betting markets, Nadal is priced at 7/1 to start the calendar year in style by successfully defending his Australian Open title and emerging victorious in Melbourne for the third time. He can expect to earn plenty of favour in tennis tips Down Under, especially if certain rivals take in enforced absences once again.
Hard courts may never have been the surface of choice for the self-styled King of Clay, but he has picked up a useful habit down the years of finding a way when odds are seemingly stacked against him. It is that ability to out-think opponents, with there seemingly no limit to how deep he is prepared to dig, that has allowed 22 Grand Slam crowns to be collected.
Nadal is, however, no different to any other elite sportsperson when it comes to tales of what might have been. While he has savoured the highest of highs on more occasions than anybody else, his copybook still boasts the odd blot.
Nobody is perfect, and even the very best in the business cannot claim to be infallible. While they will forever put themselves in contention for the most glittering of honours, occasionally, said silverware will fall out of reach.
Even Nadal has found that out to his cost, with his CV not entirely blemish-free. While he has 22 major honours to his name, that haul could have been even more impressive had he not tripped at the odd final hurdle.
Heartache
Who else wants to see this legend play forever? ?? @RafaelNadal | @rolandgarros | #RolandGarros pic.twitter.com/fsR49QcEr7
— ATP Tour (@atptour) June 5, 2022
Prior to 2008, the French Open was the only Slam he had managed to win – with three successive triumphs enjoyed in Paris – with heartache suffered at Wimbledon on two occasions while early progress at the US Open proved tricky.
Nadal endured three consecutive final defeats between the summer of 2011 and the New Year of 2012 – at all of the events outside of Roland Garros – while lines have been fluffed on Australian soil three more times since then.
A few of those setbacks have been particularly agonising, with Djokovic and Roger Federer getting the better of him over the course of five gruelling sets, and there will be a sense that a few trophies have been left in the heat of battle. Others can, of course, point to their own failings, but Nadal could have been out of sight had he prevailed in a handful of his eight final defeats in Slams.