This Thursday, October 10, 2024, one of the most shocking news in the history of tennis arrived: Rafael Nadal confirmed that he will stop being a professional tennis player after the definition of the 2024 Davis Cup, in Malaga.
In this season, the last crossing took place between Nadal and Novak Djokovic, at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games. There, the Spanish tennis player failed 6-1 and 6-4 against the Serbian. This was the sixth time this year that the Mallorcan fell on clay, after the falls recorded against the Australian Alex de Miñaur (6th) in Barcelona, the Czech Jiri Lehecka (29th) in Madrid, the Polish Hubert Hurkacz (7th) in Rome, the German Alexander Zverev (4th) at Roland Garros and the Portuguese Nuno Borges (43rd) in Bastad.
Here we bring a review of the few players who had the pleasure of defeating ‘La Fiera’ on his favorite surface at the highest level:
In the second round of Mallorca 2002, at the age of 15, the left-handed fighter would lose in straight sets against the Belgian Olivier Rochus, who would sign the first of the Manacorí’s barely 50 disappointments.
It should be noted that 12 of the fifty frustrations occurred before his twentieth birthday, a period in which the Argentine Gastón Gaudio would win three times, as well as Guillermo Coria, the Ecuadorian Nicolás Lapentti, the Chilean Fernando González and Carlos Moyá himself, current Rafa’s coach, they would do it on one occasion, as would Igor Andreev, who would mark his departure in Valencia 2005, starting the extensive streak of 81 consecutive victories.
In 2007, Rafa would lose again on his favorite surface, where the Swiss Roger Federer would beat him in the Hamburg final, a terrain that in Madrid 2009 would add his second and last joy against the former leader of the order. Perhaps the most remembered is against the Swede Robin Soderling, at Roland Garros 2009, after winning the Musketeers tournament four times in a row.
It should be noted that his bête noire on powder was the aforementioned Balkan, who beat him for the ninth time, third at the Roland Garros complex, more than any other, although the history on clay is widely favorable to the owner of 92 titles by 20-9.
All Nadal’s losses on clay (2002-2024):
No. | Year | Tournament | Rival | Result | Instance
1) 2002 | Mallorca | Olivier Rochus | 6-2 6-2 | Round of 16
2) 2003 | Monte-Carlo | Guillermo Coria | 7-6 (3) 6-2 | Round of 16
3) 2003 | Barcelona | Álex Corretja | 3-6 6-2 6-1 | second round
4) 2003 | Hamburg | Gaston Gaudio | 6-2 6-2 | Round of 16
5) 2003 | Bastad | Nicolas Lapentti | 3-6 6-3 7-6 (6) | Quarter finals
6) 2003 | Stuttgart | Fernando González | 6-2 3-6 6-2 | Second round
7) 2003 | Umag | Carlos Moyá | 6-4 6-4 | Semifinal
8) 2004 | Bastad | Gaston Gaudio 6-2 6-3 | Quarter finals
9) 2004 | Stuttgart | David Ferrer | 6-3 6-7(3) 7-5 | Quarter finals
10) 2004 | Palermo | Olivier Mutis | 6-3 6-3 | Second round
11) 2005 | Buenos Aires | Gaston Gaudio | 0-6 6-0 6-1 | Quarter finals
12) 2005 | Valencia | Igor Andreev | 7-5 6-2 | Quarterfinals
13) 2007 | Hamburg | Roger Federer | 2-6 6-2 6-0 | End
14) 2008 | Rome | Juan Carlos Ferrero | 7-5 6-1 | Second round
15) 2009 | Madrid | Roger Federer | 6-4 6-4 | Final
16) 2009 | Roland Garros | Robin Soderling | 6-2 6-7(2) 6-4 7-6(2) | Round of 16
17) 2011 | Madrid | Novak Djokovic | 7-5 6-4 | Final
18) 2011 | Roma | Novak Djokovic | 6-4 6-4 | Final
19) 2013 | Monte-Carlo | Novak Djokovic | 6-2 7-6(1) | Final
20) 2012 | Madrid | Fernando Verdasco | 6-3 3-6 7-5 | Round of 16
21) 2013 | Vina del Mar | Horacio Zeballos | 6-7 (2) 7-6 (6) 6-4 | End
22) 2014 | Monte-Carlo | David Ferrer | 7-6 (1) 6-4 | Quarter finals
23) 2014 | Barcelona | Nicolas Almagro | 2-6 7-6(5) 6-4 | Quarter finals
24) 2014 | Roma | Novak Djokovic | 4-6 6-3 6-3 | Final
25) 2015 | Rio de Janeiro | Fabio Fognini | 1-6 6-2 7-5 | Semifinal
26) 2015 | Monte-Carlo | Novak Djokovic | 6-3 6-3 | Semifinal
27) 2015 | Barcelona | Fabio Fognini | 64 76(6) | Round of 16
28) 2015 | Madrid | Andy Murray | 6-3 6-2 | Final
29) 2015 | Rome | Stan Wawrinka | 7-6(7)6-2 | Quarter finals
30) 2015 | Roland Garros | Novak Djokovic | 7-6-3 6-1 | Quarter finals
31) 2016 | Buenos Aires | Dominic Thiem | 6-4 4-6 7-6(4) | Semifinal
32) 2016 | Rio de Janeiro | Pablo Cuevas | 6-7(6) 7-6(3) 6-4 | Semifinal
33) 2016 | Madrid | Andy Murray | 7-5 6-4 | Semifinal
34) 2016 | Rome | Novak Djokovic | 7-5 7-6(4) | Quarter finals
35) 2017 | Rome | Dominic Thiem | 6-4 6-3 | Quarter finals
36) 2018 | Madrid | Dominic Thiem | 7-5 6-3 | Quarter finals
37) 2019 | Monte Carlo | Fabio Fognini | 6-4 6-2 | Semifinal
38) 2019 | Barcelona | Dominic Thiem | 6-4 6-4 | Semifinal
39) 2019 | Madrid | Stefanos Tsitsipas 6-4 2-6 6-3 | Semifinal
40) 2020 | Rome | Diego Schwartzman | 6-2 7-5 | Quarter finals
41) 2021 | Monte-Carlo | Andrey Rublev | 6-2, 4-6 and 6-2 | Quarter finals
42) 2021 | Madrid | Alexander Zverev | 6-4 and 6-4 | Quarter finals
43) 2021 | Roland Garros | Novak Djokovic | 3-6, 6-3, 7-6 (4) and 6-2 | Semifinals
44) 2022 | Madrid | Carlos Alcaraz | 6-2, 1-6 and 6-3 | Quarter finals
45) 2022 | Rome | Denis Shapovalov | 1-6, 7-5 and 6-2 | Third round
46) 2024 | Barcelona | Alex de Miñaur | 7-5 y 6-1 | Second round
47) 2024 | Madrid | Jiri Lehecka | 7-5 and 6-4 | Fourth round
48) 2024 | Rome | Hubert Hurkacz | 6-1 y 6-3 | Second round
49) 2024 | Roland Garros | Alexander Zverev | 6-3, 7-6 (5) and 6-3 | First round
50) 2024 | Bastad | Nuno Borges | 6-3 and 6-2 | End
51) 2024 | Olympic Games | Novak Djokovic | 6-1 and 6-4 | Second round
