Rafael Nadal matches Ivan Lendl's Record for the third most match wins on tour after the Australian Open first round win
After his win against Jack Draper in the first round of the ongoing Australian Open, Rafael Nadal tied for joint-third with Ivan Lendl for the career men's singles wins in the Open Era.
Nadal came through a difficult first-round encounter against the young Brit in four sets 7-5, 2-6, 6-4, 6-1 in scorching heat in Melbourne to get his 1068th win on the ATP tour. The victory moves him 32 wins clear of his arch-rival Novak Djokovic, who stays in fifth place.
Jimmy Connors leads the list of most wins on the ATP tour with 1291 wins, followed by Roger Federer's 1251. If the Spaniard wins his second-round match against USA's Mackenzie McDonald, he will move ahead of Lendl and break off the tie.
Most career men's singles wins in the Open Era:
1275 - Jimmy Connors
1251 - Roger Federer
1068 - Ivan Lendl
1068 - Rafa Nadal
1036 - Novak Djokovic
@RafaelNadal ties level with Lendl on third most wins ever! 👏 https://t.co/7tVJCpZju9
"The most important thing today is a victory against a tough opponent" - Rafael Nadal
Rafael Nadal was relieved to get his first win of the season under his belt after losing his two matches against Cameron Norrie and Alex de Minaur at the United Cup.
In his post-match press conference, he mentioned that the victory was the most important thing for him.
"I need a victory, so that's the main thing. Doesn't matter the way. The most important thing today is a victory against a tough opponent. To win against Jack, as I said before the tournament start, has been one of the toughest first rounds possible being seeded. We know not going to be perfect, as I said the other day. Was not perfect," Nadal said.
"But to win against Jack, I need to do things well, no? I think I did things well. So satisfied with the victory because that gives me the chance to play after tomorrow again," he added.
The 22-time Grand Slam champion was tested from start to finish by Draper and accepted that he made some mistakes in the match, especially in the second set.
"Have been a tough battle, but I accepted well the mistakes. I was humble enough to accept that going to be a little bit ups and downs during the match. Typical thing when you are not in a winning mood. When you lost more, when you are not competing every week, that's the work, no?" he said.
"Accept all these mistakes in a positive way and keep working. That's what I did. Except in the second set was a big mistake at the beginning," Nadal added.