6 Players Rafael Nadal has never defeated
Rafael Nadal comprises one-third of men's tennis' Big 3 trifecta of Roger Federer, Novak Djokovic and Nadal himself.
The Spaniard holds a plethora of records unrivaled by any other player in the Open Era. Possessing the best winning percentage (83.3) of any player to have played over 500 singles matches, Nadal's 14 French Open titles, a triple 'La Decima' of titles at three different tournaments (French Open, Monte Carlo, Barcelona), most Masters 1000 titles (36), and most claycourt titles (63) are some of his most prominent achievements.
Nadal's 1068 singles match wins are only bettered by Jimmy Connors (1274) and Roger Federer (1251) in the all-time list, while the Spaniard's 92 singles titles are dwarfed by Connors (109), Federer (103), Ivan Lendl (94) and Novak Djokovic (93). The Spaniard's 22 Grand Slam titles is the joint-most in the history of men's tennis alongside Djokovic.
Amongst the numerous players to have faced Nadal, Djokovic (30 wins) leads a group of only 9 players to have a winning head-to-head record against the Spaniard. The group gets more rarefied if only players with a perfect record against the Spaniard were to be considered.
Let's meet this elite ensemble.
#1 Paradorn Srichaphan (Thailand)
The first Asian player to break into the world's top 10, Paradorn Srichaphan handed Grand Slam debutant Nadal a straight-sets defeat in the third round at Wimbledon 2003.
It would be Nadal's only straight-sets reverse at the grasscourt Major.
#2 Olivier Mutis (France)
Olivier Mutis won his lone match against Nadal on clay in the second round at 2004 Palermo, overcoming the Spaniard in straight sets.
It marked only the fourth time Nadal had lost to a player ranked outside the top 100 of the ATP singles rankings.
#3 Joachim Johansson (Sweden)
The tall Swede won his lone match against Nadal at his hometown tournament of Stockholm. He beat the Spaniard in straight sets in the second round of the 2006 edition of the tournament.
The loss against the then 690-ranked Johansson marked Nadal's lone defeat to a player ranked outside the top 200 of the ATP single's rankings.