Nadal is only the second player in the Open era, along with Novak Djokovic, to win every Grand Slam tournament at least twice. The French Open was his most successful tournament, with 14 titles to his name. He also won the US Open four times and won the Australian Open and Wimbledon twice. Such was the Spaniard’s dominance in Grand Slam tournaments that an elimination in the first round of the tournament came as a huge surprise. He suffered only his third TBS first round defeat after being knocked out by Alexander Zverev at the 2024 French Open.
No. 3. Rafael Nadal – Steve Darcis – Wimbledon, 2013
Rafael Nadal faced Steve Darcis in the first round of Wimbledon in 2013. The Spaniard arrived at the tournament having won Roland Garros and defeated Novak Djokovic in the final. Darcis won the match 7-6(4), 7-6(8) 6-4, handing Nadal his first ever first round defeat at a Grand Slam tournament. The Belgian used a good serve and dominated the Spaniard, who failed to even win a set.
No. 2. Fernando Verdasco – Australian Open 2016
At the 2016 Australian Open, the Spaniards met in the first round in Melbourne. Rafael Nadal was one of the tournament favorites, reaching the final in two of the last four tournaments. However, Rafa was eliminated in the first round after a five-set thriller. Verdasco stunned Nadal 7-6 (6) 4-6 3-6 7-6 (4) 6-2 in four hours to claim his third and final victory over his compatriot.
No. 1. Alexander Zverev – Roland-Garros 2024
World number four Alexander Zverev faced unseeded Rafael Nadal in the first round of the French Open. The German won the match in three sets and handed Nadal his first ever defeat in the first round at Roland Garros.
Zverev’s 6-3, 7-6 (5), 6-3 victory was his first against Nadal on clay. It was only the fourth defeat of the Spaniard’s career at Roland Garros, where his win-loss ratio was high. 112-4.
Vyacheslav Gorbachev, Athletistic
Source: Sport
I’m Rose Brown , a journalist and writer with over 10 years of experience in the news industry. I specialize in covering tennis-related news for Athletistic, a leading sports media website. My writing is highly regarded for its quick turnaround and accuracy, as well as my ability to tell compelling stories about the sport.
