Nobody expected Rafael Nadal to win two Grand Slams in the first six months of 2022. The Spanish phenomenon had played just seven official tournaments in 2021 and his career seemed to be winding down. Rafa himself had admitted that he did not know if he would return to play at the highest levels.
Arriving in Melbourne without great expectations, the former world number 1 accomplished one of the most incredible feats of his entire career. After surviving two real battles against Denis Shapovalov and Matteo Berrettini, the 36-year-old from Manacor came back two sets behind Daniil Medvedev in the final.
The Majorcan has thus become the fourth man in history to have won all the Slams at least twice (together with Djokovic, Rod Laver and Roy Emerson). Despite an approximate condition, Nadal repeated himself at Roland Garros putting his 22nd Major on the bulletin board.
The Iberian has therefore widened the gap that separates him from Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic in the all-time standings. Through his Twitter profile, Alex Corretja illustrated how Rafa’s triumph in Australia turned the tables on the table.
Corretja pays tribute to Nadal
The 2022 Australian Open final between Rafael Nadal and Daniil Medvedev was arguably one of the most thrilling matches in the history of the sport. “Turning point of 2022, and who knows, maybe in tennis history,” Corretja tweeted.
While Nadal is the best ever clay court tennis player, Swiss legend Roger Federer thinks that his prowess on the other two courts is no less. In an old video that resurfaced on social media, Federer claims that, just because he is brilliant on clay, it doesn’t mean that he is not strong on hard and grass courts.
“Nadal is very very strong. I mean, people are still underestimating him. I just can’t believe it, to be honest. Because on the grass he is very strong, on the hard court almost even stronger, and on clay the strongest.
But strong means very strong, and not simply good. And that’s just what makes him special”. He said. After winning the third set, Nadal continued to grind against possibly the best hardcourt player in the world at the moment.
The Spaniard stole the fourth set and forced the match into a decider. Serving for the championship at 5-4, Nadal dropped serve. Memories of the 2012 and 2017 Australian Open finals, where he lost to Novak Djokovic and Roger Federer after leading in the fifth set, must have flashed before his eyes.
Source: Tennis World USA