Column | Gracias Rafa: Nadal walks into the sunset, carrying some legacy

As a sport, tennis is fortunate in that in roughly every decade, there appears to be intense competition between the top-ranked players of the era, each of whom can claim credit for being considered a genius. In the 1970s and early 80s, there was Bjorn Borg, whose rivalry, first with Jimmy Connors and later with John McEnroe, lit up the courts.

This era was followed by a phase when Stefan Edberg and Andre Agassi challenged Pete Sampras's all-around supremacy. Though Roger Federer emerged on the scene and established himself as one of the all-time greats to have graced this game, his reign was regularly challenged by two brilliant players—Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic—with each one pushing the other to attain sublime levels of greatness with the racquet in hand.

Among them, Federer was the first to retire from the game, which he did in September 2022. Now Nadal has followed suit, hanging up his well-worn shoes after the Davis Cup match, in which Spain, his side, lost to the Netherlands in the quarterfinals.

Born in Manacor on the Mallorca island of Spain in June 1986, Nadal was a natural athlete who took a fancy to football more than tennis in his early years. However, one of his uncles, Toni, who was a tennis coach in a local club, saw the prodigious talent that the boy was blessed with and took him under his wings.

Toni convinced Nadal to start playing as a left-hander as he felt this gave him a natural advantage in the sport. Nadal's ability to manage this when he was close to 10 years of age speaks volumes not only about his athleticism and ability but also his immense focus and determination.

By the time he was in his teens, Nadal’s prowess with the tennis racquet was known throughout Spain. He won almost all the age group titles in Spain besides the Open Under 12, an unofficial world championship for children aged below 12 years.

In 2000, he defeated Carlos Maya, then ranked in the top 10 in ATP rankings in an exhibition game. After this, Maya started practising with the young Nadal in their hometown, thus saving the latter the trouble of relocating to Barcelona to sharpen his skills.

Nadal became a professional player in 2001. It was tough for the 14-year-old in the initial days since he had to compete with men much older and stronger than him. However, he fought hard and won his first match at that level in September 2001 to get into the ATP rankings for the first time.

Though he finished 2001 at a lowly rank of 811, he improved by leaps and bounds during the next 12 months and ended 2002 as 199th in the world. He reached the third round of the Wimbledon championship in 2003 and broke into the top 50 of the ATP rankings, finishing the year at 49th position. Thus, in less than 3 years, Nadal, while still a teenager, managed to move into the top echelons of the game. He did not look back after that.

In 2004, Nadal became the second player (after Mats Wilander of Sweden) to win the French Open Grand Slam championship on his first appearance on the famed courts at Rolland Garros. The players who fell before him included Federer (semifinals) and Mariano Puerto (finals).

Though he failed to make much of an impression at Wimbledon and the US Open, falling in the early round in both these tournaments, consistent performances in the ATP and Masters championships helped him to move into the no 2 slot in the ATP rankings, behind Federer.

After swiftly climbing the rankings ladder, Nadal took more than three years to move from the second spot to the first. He dislodged Federer from the No. 1 ranking in August 2008, when he rode on the back of a dazzling form to win the French Open, Wimbledon and the gold medal in the Beijing Olympics in 3 months.

At Wimbledon, he ended the reign of Federer, who was on the lookout for his sixth consecutive title, in a match that lasted 4 hours and 48 minutes, one of the longest in the finals in the history of this championship. Before that, he also recorded his fourth straight title triumph at the French Open. Though he lost in the US Open semifinals, he returned strongly to win the Australian Open at the start of 2009.

However, 2009 was not a good year for him, for not only did he lose his no: 1 spot in the rankings, but he also tasted defeat in the French Open for the first time when he lost in the fourth round to Robin Soderling. A knee injury kept him out of Wimbledon, and he did not go beyond the last four stages of the US Open either.

He did not do too well in the Australian Open, and he was forced to retire during the game in the quarterfinals. At this stage, it appeared as if Nadal’s body was finding it difficult to cope with the workload it was being forced to take up, and question marks were raised about how long he would continue in the top tier of the international tennis circuit.

But Nadal proved his detractors wrong by bouncing back strongly in 2010. First, he regained the French Open title, defeating Robin Soderling in the finals, thus avenging the loss suffered in the previous year. This was followed by winning the Wimbledon and the US Open championships, thus becoming the first player since Rod Laver to win grand slam titles on clay, grass and hard courts in the same calendar year.

These wins also helped him to wrest back the no: 1 ranking from Federer. However, he lost this position to Novak Djokovic the following year, heralding the start of a new rivalry at the top of the tennis world.

The rise of Djokovic at the start of the second decade of this century meant that the No.1 spot rotated amongst the trio for the next 10 years. Nadal reigned supreme on clay courts, while Federer was the Lord of the grass, and Djokovic was the master of hard courts. But the genius of these great players was such that they could also perform brilliantly on all surfaces.

Djokovic ended Nadal’s unbeaten run of 6 years at the French Open in 2015. Three years later, Nadal mounted a spirited challenge against Djokovic at Wimbledon, where the semifinal match between the two lasted for 5 hours and 17 minutes before the latter won the last set 10-8.

Nadal’s last reign at the No. 1 spot was in 2017 and ended a year later. He surprised many observers by showing fire and spirit to win the Australian Open in 2022 and continued his dominance over the clay courts at the French Open, where he lifted his last Grand Slam title in 2022.

Though plagued by injuries in the last phase of his career, Nadal gamely pulled along till he decided to retire from the sport this year. He leaves the game with numerous records to his credit, including a Career Grand Slam (winning all four Grand Slam titles and an Olympic medal). He will remain one of the greatest clay court players of all time, as can be seen from his tally of 63 titles on this surface, which includes the 14 occasions when he emerged triumphant in the finals of the French Open championship.

His four title wins at the US Open and two each at Wimbledon and Australian Open shows that he also possessed the skill and determination to adapt his game to the requirements of other surfaces. His numerous comebacks after injuries testify to his grit and resilience, besides his undiminished passion for the game.

Nadal’s strength was his powerful forehand with a heavy topspin, which he used to devastating effect. The amount of topspin involved in his forehand shots was so high that they were estimated to impart, on an average, 3200 revolutions per minute, as opposed to 2700 by Federer and 1900 by Sampras and Agassi.

His athleticism and nimble footwork gave him excellent court coverage. At the same time, his enormous stamina ensured that he could keep playing for hours without a break, besides indulging in never-ending rallies. His ground strokes, where he could find unique angles, invariably caught his opponents on the wrong foot and landed him winners. He was not a serve and volley player and hit very few aces, but he more than made up for this with a higher degree of consistency while serving.

Nadal is unique in that he will be remembered for his heroics on the court and his demeanour and conduct off it. Despite his enormous success, Nadal remained a modest soul and was often hailed as a model for “humility and empathy”. He did not throw tantrums on the court, never bad-mouthed opponents or officials and always found time to spare for his fans and supporters.

He set up a foundation in his hometown to help disadvantaged kids by giving them opportunities through sports. He also contributes regularly to charities besides helping those affected by cyclones, floods, earthquakes and other natural disasters.

When Rafel Nadal bids adieu to the world of competitive tennis, the sport will lose a champion performer and a warm human being who, through his deeds on and off the courts, brought happiness and cheer to the lives of millions of people. He has earned a place not only in the pantheon of all-time greats that the game has seen but also in the hearts of followers of this sport. The tennis world will be poorer by his absence.

Well played, Nadal! Best wishes in the years ahead as you move into the next phase of your life!