When Spaniard Rafael Nadal won the French Open for the 14th time earlier this month, he further extended his record as the leading Grand Slam winner of all time.
That was the 22nd time he had won one of the four major tournaments in tennis, comprising the Australian and French Opens, Wimbledon and the US Open. That moved him two clear on the all-time list of his great rivals, Novak Djokovic and Roger Federer, and he now has eight more than the American Pete Sampras.
The only two men still playing the game who have won more than one Grand Slam title each are Andy Murray of Great Britain and Stan Wawrinka of Switzerland, who have three each. Both, though, have had significant injury problems – as has Federer – in recent years, and are unlikely to add to their haul.
Should it have been Djokovic?
When Djokovic won his sixth Wimbledon title last July, it was widely assumed that the Serb would go on claim the all-time record by himself. The youngest of the three great rivals, he had already claimed the Australian Open and French Open titles in 2021, and was chasing a rare Golden Slam, including Olympic gold.
In the end he was knocked out at the quarter-final stage in Tokyo, and then lost the final of the US Open to Russia’s Daniil Medvedev, but still he arrived in Melbourne in January to compete for the Australian Open, red hot favourite to add to his nine previous titles there.
Instead, he never got to compete in the tournament, eventually deported from the country because of his unvaccinated status.
Since then he has struggled for form and consistency, and failed to defend his French Open title. And, although he could yet win Wimbledon again, unless he changes his mind on his vaccination status, it looks like he will be banned from entering the US later this year.
It means that, currently, two out of the four Grand Slams are effectively barred to him.
Nadal takes advantage
Nadal has taken full advantage of Djokovic’s absence and struggles. The Spaniard arrived in Melbourne with little match practice after an injury lay-off, but still managed to battle through to claim his place in the history books.
And then in Paris he regained his crown as The King of Clay.
There are reasons why his record may not be surpassed.
An unprecedented era
Although it may now be coming to an end, this has been a golden era for men’s tennis.
In the decade starting in January 2012, of 39 Grand Slam tournaments contested, the big three won 31 between them. That is unprecedented in the sport. There have been dominant players before, but not for such a sustained period, and at such a level.
It may be a long time, if ever, before their like is seen again.
Nadal’s dominance on clay
Although Nadal has won titles on every surface, it is undoubtedly true that clay is his favourite surface, and the one on which he excels more than any other.
His record at the French Open is unparalleled. Since he made his first appearance at the Roland Garros complex on the outskirts of Paris in 2004, he has only ever lost three matches there, two of them to Djokovic, and his tournament record currently reads 112 – 3.
It is difficult to envisage any one man having such mastery on one surface in the future.
Level of Competition
The big three have all displayed considerable longevity. Federer is now 40, Nadal 36, whilst Djokovic is the comparative youngster at 34 years.
However, tennis, like many sports, is increasingly a younger man’s game because of the sheer physical demands that it puts on the body.
A younger generation of player like Medvedev, Alexander Zverev of Germany and Stefanos Tsitsipas have all threatened to win Grand Slam titles over the years, but only the Russian has managed it so far.
At some stage, though, the old guard will have to move aside.
The issue is that there has yet to emerge a player from the chasing pack who will dominate tennis in the same way as Nadal and the other two.
(Some have hopes for Nadal’s compatriot Carlos Alcaraz, but he is still a teenager making his way in the sport).
Instead, Grand Slam titles are likely to be shared among players, with their proficiency on the varying surfaces a determining factor.
Injuries
Whilst injuries are a fact of life for any top tennis player because of the constant strain of the sport, a certain amount of luck is required to stay at the top. Federer, for example, was able to play much of his career without major injury, until they have caught up with him in recent years.
The history of the game, though, is littered with examples of top players – Murray, Wawrinka, Anderson, Nishikori are just recent examples – who spent large chunks of their career on the treatment table.
Anybody hoping to emulate Nadal will need to be very physically robust, and will also need their share of luck too.
Overall and conclusion
If anybody is to beat Nadal’s record, the only realistic candidate is currently Djokovic, but fate and his own beliefs, seem to be conspiring against him at the moment. Apart from that, men’s tennis can soon expect to return to the norm, where the major titles are shared between five or six top players.
A golden age may be drawing to a close.
