Rafael Nadal is the Greatest Tennis Player of All Time
On the eve of the French Open Final, where Novak Djokovic is likely to win his “career Grand slam” and his 12th Grand Slam Title, I can’t help but think of the greatest tennis player I ever watched — Rafael Nadal.
Yes Federer fans, I am sorry to break it to you but number of slams and outside perception are not the only measures of greatness in tennis. And to Novak fans, you are still 24 hours away from a career slam, and a lot of titles short. Rafa dominated the sport (and Federer) like no one I’ve ever seen.
What are my qualifications to write this as a zero time grand slam winner? Well, I suppose I’m just as qualified as Bill Simmons is to comment on basketball, or any other sports critic is to comment on any other sport for that matter. I am an avid fan, former collegiate player, and I’ve watched hundreds of professional matches live. I’ve witnessed and experienced the mental ups and downs of tennis, and have a deep appreciation for greatness — especially given the amount of travel these players embark on, and the lack of an offseason.
And the sport is mental — on a pure talent level the greatest player I’ve ever watched live is Marat Safin. But for his unpredictable mental state, we might be having a conversation about him being GOAT. His thrashing of Pete Sampras in the US Open, and his brilliance against Federer in the 2005 Australian were spectacles to behold.
But Rafa — Rafa is the only player I’ve ever watched who could destroy an opponent before the match even started. The prospect of having to play multiple 50 stroke rallies against an opponent who will not relent was devastating to many greats (when Rafa was at his peak).
Of course times have changed, and Rafa has been on the decline for a few years now, but here are my basic arguments as to why he is GOAT:
He Dominated Federer at His Peak
It’s not just that Rafa won 2/3 times against Federer, but the fact he did it at Roger’s peak.
Cue the “well he only beat Roger on Clay” Argument
Actually — Rafa beat Roger on Roger’s best surface (grass) at Roger’s absolute peak in what many consider to be the greatest match in the history of tennis. Not only that, but Rafa beat Roger multiple times in Australia (hard courts) and absolutely dominated him in slams. On the biggest stage in tennis, Rafa beat Roger on a regular basis.
Out of Rafa’s 69 career titles, 20 have come on hard courts. In contrast, out of Roger Federer’s 88 — only 11 have been on clay.
No single player has been as dominant on an individual surface as Rafa
No player in our lifetime will duplicate Rafa’s 49 titles on clay — including 9 in Paris. There was a stretch of YEARS where if you played Rafa on clay, there was a near 100 percent probability you would lose. It took him YEARS to lose his first match in Paris — to the now-retired Robin Soderling.
Rafa also won Olympic Gold as a SINGLES Player.
Oh, but really, he’s only great on clay courts
Wrong again. Rafa actually owns a 9–4 record against Novak in Grand Slams, and a winning record against him in US Opens (2–1). Rafa owns 28 Masters Series Crowns, 7 of which were on hard courts. Let’s also not forget his two Wimbledon titles as compared to Roger’s one French Open.
Right, but he has zero longevity and gets hurt all the time
People forget that Rafa has been playing slams since he was 17 years old. He made it to the 3rd round of Wimbledon at 17, and won his first slam in Paris when he was 19. Roger only started winning grand slams two years later — that’s two years of extreme wear and tear from full seasons of play at a high intensity level. Rafa’s body physically peaked far sooner than Roger’s, but you can’t blame him for his biology or style of play — the fact remains that Rafa’s style dominated Roger’s. And that Rafa has been playing at the professional level almost as long as Roger even though Roger has a few years on him.
He must be on drugs
The ATP has one of the most stringent drug testing programs in all of professional sports. This argument has been debunked 1,000 times.
We are likely never to see a rivalry at the level of Federer/Nadal ever again in tennis. It was one of the best in the history of professional sports. I am sad that Sunday morning in week 2 of Roland Garros will likely involve watching Rafa again. It’s a sad day for tennis and sports fans, but let’s pauses to appreciate the greatness of Rafa (and Roger) tomorrow.
