List of unbreakable records scripted by Rafael Nadal
What's the story
Spanish ace Rafael Nadal recently opted out of the 2021 Wimbledon and Tokyo 2020 Olympics in order to prolong his career. He was earlier knocked out of the French Open after losing to world number one Novak Djokovic in the semi-finals. This was only his third defeat at Roland Garros. Let us have a look at the unbreakable records of Nadal.
Record
Rafael Nadal at Grand Slams
Nadal has the joint-most Grand Slam titles (20) along with Roger Federer and Djokovic. The Spaniard has won as many as 13 of these at French Open. Nadal is known as the most prolific player on the clay court. He has won the Australian Open once and also owns four US Open and two Wimbledon titles. Nadal has a win-loss record of 291-41 at majors.
French Open
His notable feats at French Open
Nadal is deemed invincible at French Open. The Spanish maestro has most titles in Paris (13), seven more than the second-placed Bjorn Borg (6). This is the most titles won by a player on a single surface. He holds the record for winning at least four consecutive Roland Garros titles thrice (2005-2008, 2010-2014, and 2017-2020). Nadal has a perfect record in French Open finals.
Record
An incredible record of 105-3 at Roland Garros
Nadal has an incredible record of 105-3 at French Open. He has the joint-most match-wins at a single Slam along with Federer (105, Wimbledon). Nadal has lost to only two players in the history of Roland Garros. Besides losing to Djokovic in 2021, he succumbed to him in 2015 (quarter-finals). Robin Soderling is the only other to defeat Nadal in the tournament (2009).
Streak
Nadal won 39 consecutive French Open matches between 2010-2015
Before his semi-final defeat to Djokovic, Nadal had an astonishing winning streak of 35 matches at Roland Garros. Prior to this loss, Nadal last lost a French Open match in the 2015 edition. Nadal registered a similar streak between 2010 and 2015 when he won five consecutive titles in Paris. He had extended his unbeaten streak to 39 matches back then.
Feats
Here are the unique feats of Nadal
Nadal has reached a total of eight Grand Slam finals without losing a set (2007, 2008, 2010, 2012, 2017, 2018, 2019, and 2020). He remains the youngest man to achieve a Career Grand Slam and Career Golden Slam (at 24). Nadal holds the record for winning Olympic gold medal across two separate editions (2008: singles and 2016: doubles).