3 times Rafael Nadal was pushed to 5 sets at Roland Garros
Rafael Nadal is called the 'King of Clay' for a reason, his astounding achievements on the surface, especially at Roland Garros.
The 35-year-old is a record 13-time champion at the claycourt Major and has only lost three of his 112 matches. He has won seven more titles than the next most successful player in the tournament (Bjorn Borg) and 24 more matches than the player with the second-most wins (Novak Djokovic).
Nadal's level of dominance at Roland Garros can be gauged by the fact that he has only dropped two sets in a match on six occasions - winning three of them. On Sunday, the Spaniard was taken to five sets for only the third time in his Roland Garros career.
Five-setters? Welcome to Rafa's land! 💪🇪🇸
@emirates | #EmiratesFlyBetterMoments | #RolandGarros https://t.co/lYRQEzBiyf
On that note, here's a look at what happened on the three occasions Rafael Nadal has had to play five sets at the claycourt Major:
#3 2022 Fourth Round - Rafael Nadal beats Felix Auger-Aliassime 3-6, 6-3, 6-2, 3-6, 6-3
Rafael Nadal faced his first real test at Roland Garros this week against Felix Auger-Aliassime after cruising through the first three rounds without dropping a set.
The young Canadian took the game to Nadal, breaking twice to grab the opening set, marking just the 11th time the 13-time champion dropped the first set in the tournament. However, Nadal responded in kind after saving two break points at the start of the second.
The Spaniard dropped just five games across sets two and three as he took an all-important two-sets-to-one lead. However, Auger-Aliassime wasn't going anywhere, securing an early break to force a decider, as Nadal was taken the distance at Roland Garros for the first time in eight years.
In the fifth set, the two players stayed on serve before Nadal engineered the decisive break in the eighth game before serving out the victory in four hours and 23 minutes.
LEGENDARY
@RafaelNadal reaches a 16th final eight in Paris passing a titanic battle with Auger-Aliassime 3-6, 6-3, 6-2, 3-6, 6-3
#RolandGarros https://t.co/TIxTUM8xYL
The Spaniard acknowledged that he had a poor start to the match and also the fourth set.
“I didn’t start the match well," he said. "I had a lot of opportunities in the first set but I couldn’t convert one, so it was a tough first set for me. After coming back the next two sets, I think I finished the third playing much better."
"The beginning of the fourth was very tough. He has a huge serve, and I was not able to push him back. I am very happy with how I adapted at the end. I was able to play more aggressive and go more often to the net and it made a difference without a doubt,” he added.
Nadal has now reached a record-equalling 16th Roland Garros quarterfinal, where he'll play his arch-rival Novak Djokovic. The Spaniard enjoys a commanding 7-2 lead over Djokovic in the tournament but has lost two of their last three meetings, including the semifinals last year.
#2 2013 Semifinal - Rafael Nadal beats Novak Djokovic 6-4, 3-6, 6-1, 6-7(3), 9-7
Rafael Nadal had an almighty scare against Novak Djokovic in the 2013 Roland Garros semifinals.
With the two legends clashing in the semis, it was 'the final before the final', as the winner was expected to beat either David Ferrer or Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, who faced off in the other semifinal.
In one of Nadal and Djokovic's most memorable Roland Garros clashes, the Serb came close to breaching Nadal's bastion. However, he fell tantalisingly short in a gladiatorial tussle, where the momentum shifted from one player to the other on numerous occasions.
Nadal took the opener in 51 minutes and looked on course for a routine win when he led 3-2 on serve in the second. However, Djokovic reeled off four straight games to restore parity. The Spaniard regained his mojo, dropping only one game to move to within a set of his eighth Roland Garros final.
There were more crests and troughs in store, though. Nadal twice served for the match in the fourth, but both times Djokovic thwarted him to force a tie-break, which the Serb won.
Riding his momentum, Djokovic, serving at 4-3, 40-40, put away a routine smash only to make contact with the net. He lost the point and then the game as Nadal roared back into the contest. He would break again to end a memorable four-hour 37-minute contest.
2013: 1/2 finale Nadal/Djokovic: un des plus gros matchs sur terre / 1/2 final Nadal/Djokovic, one of the greatest match ever played on clay https://t.co/rcwfeerwKQ
Djokovic spoke solemnly after the match.
“I congratulate him, because that's why he's a champion. That's why he's been ruling Roland Garros for many years, and for me it's another year,” he said.
Nadal went on to win his eighth Roland Garros title, beating Ferrer in straight sets in the summit clash.
#1 2011 First Round - Rafael Nadal beats John Isner 6-4, 6-7(2), 6-7(2), 6-2, 6-4
Very rarely does Rafael Nadal play long matches at the start of his Roland Garros campaign. However, things were different in 2011 when World No. 39 John Isner took the then five-time champion the distance, threatening to do the unthinkable.
There was little inkling of what was to come when Nadal drew first blood, taking the first set 6-4. However, it was unchartered territory for the Spaniard when Isner took the next two sets in tie-breaks. Only once in 38 previous matches had Nadal conceded a two-sets-to-one lead at Roland Garros, in the 2009 fourth round against Robin Soderling, which he lost.
However, Nadal raised his level, dropping only six games in the remainder of the match to avoid one of the biggest tournament upsets. He would go on to beat Roger Federer in the final to win his sixth Roland Garros title.
3/3 - Rafael #Nadal has won all his three career matches at the #RolandGarros who went at the fifth set
R1 in 2011 v John Isner
SF in 2013 v Novak Djokovic
R4 in 2022 v #FelixAugerAliassime
Marathoner. https://t.co/hL4FqKCJTM
Isner spoke of Nadal's greatness after the match.
"What it came down to is the way he played in the fourth and fifth sets. I haven't seen tennis like that ever. That's why he's No. 1 in the world and one of the greatest players ever," he said.
Nadal acknowledged that he wasn't at his fluent best.
"I have been making these mistakes over the last few months. I accept this. Once you accept there is a problem, you can face the problem and find solutions. Right now … I don't think this will happen again," he said.