4 milestones Rafael Nadal could achieve at 2022 Roland Garros
Rafael Nadal, along with Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic, is widely considered one of the greatest players in the game's history.
The 35-year-old is most renowned for his prowess on clay, especially at Roland Garros. He has won a scarcely believable 105 of his 108 matches on the Parisian terre battue, winning 13 titles.
That shouldn't come as much of a surprise, though. Nadal is arguably the greatest player on clay, winning 62 titles on the surface, to earn the sobriquet 'King of Clay'.
For the 13th time...
@RafaelNadal is King in Paris.
#RolandGarros https://t.co/ICbgLmYj0T
Currently at the Rome Masters, where he's looking to win a record-extending 11th title, Nadal has quite a few milestones to look forward to at Roland Garros this year. On that note, here's a look at four of them:
#1 Rafael Nadal could become third player to register 300 Grand Slam men's singles match wins
Rafael Nadal has monstrous numbers at Roland Garros, but he's no slouch at the three other Grand Slam tournaments as well.
With his Australian Open triumph earlier this year, Nadal joined Novak Djokovic as the only players in the Open Era to win a multiple career Grand Slam. The legendary left-hander owns an impressive 82% win record at all four Majors combined.
In addition to his 105 wins at Roland Garros, Nadal has won 76 matches at Melbourne Park, 53 at Wimbledon and 64 at the US Open. If the 13-time winner wins his first two matches at Roland Garros, he'll join Federer (369) and Djokovic (323) as the only male players with 300 Grand Slam match wins.
#2 Become third player to reach 30 Grand Slam men's singles finals
Rafael Nadal has been a solid performer at all four Grand Slam tournaments. He's one of only three players (Federer and Djokovic being the others) to win 50 matches and reach five finals in each of the four Majors.
The World No. 4 has reached six title matches at the Australian Open (won two), 13 at Roland Garros (won all), five at Wimbledon (won two) and six at the US Open (won four).
Rafael Nadal reached his 29th Career grand slam final, 6th at the #AusOpen
He is just 1 win away from epic 21st major title. After 2009, he's again so close to win his 2nd #AustralianOpen title. Tennis at its best, courtesy of #RafaNadal congrats & goodluck rafa👑💙
#AO2022 https://t.co/OT7BhidyBW
Nadal has had a blistering start to his 2022 campaign, winning 23 of his 25 matches so far. However, only four of those matches have come on clay, including two at the Madrid Masters last week, where he lost to eventual champion Carlos Alcaraz in the quarterfinals.
Currently in Rome, the left-hander will look to put together a deep run before embarking on his 18th Roland Garros campaign later this summer. Regardless of how he fares this week at the Foro Italico, Nadal will be a huge favorite to reach the second week at Roland Garros.
The Spaniard has endured only two losses, one of which came last year in the semis, in 39 matches at Roland Garros from the quarterfinals onwards. If he reaches that stage again, it would take a brave man to bet against Nadal making another summit clash at the claycourt Major.
If that happens, it would be his 30th Grand Slam final, making him the third player to reach the landmark after Federer and Djokovic (both 31).
#3 Move third in all-time Grand Slam singles titles leaderboard (men and women)
Rafael Nadal won a record 21st Grand Slam title at the Australian Open this year, the most by any player in men's singles, breaking a tie with Federer and Djokovic.
The Spaniard now has the opportunity to inrease the lead atop the all-time men's leaderboard and also climb up the all-time leaderboard (men and women). He's currently three titles behind Margaret Court, who won 24 women's singles titles.
Another title for Nadal at Roland Garros would be his 22nd at a Major, putting him level with Steffi Graf. Only Serena Williams (23) would stand between Nadal and another slice of tennis immortality.
#4 Nadal's Roland Garros title tally alone could move joint-third in all-time men's singles Grand Slam leaderboard
Rafael Nadal has a staggering record at Roland Garros that requires little introduction.
Making his debut at the tournament 17 years ago, Nadal won his first 31 matches across five editions, winning four titles, before losing to Robin Sodering in the fourth round in 2009. The Spaniard then won 39 consecutive matches between 2010 and 2015 before losing in the quarterfinals to Djokovic, racking up five titles.
Between 2016 and 2021, Nadal would embark on a 35-match win streak, sweeping four titles, before enduring defeat in the semifinals to eventual winner Djokovic last year.
If the Spaniard goes all the way this year and wins a 14th title, his Roland Garros tally alone would be good enough for joint-third place on the men's all-time leaderboard. To put that into context, Pete Sampras won his 14 Grand Slam titles between 1990 and 2002 at three different tournaments.