“In this life, everything has a beginning and an end.”
The beginning in question was 23 years ago, while the end is fast approaching.
At this week’s Davis Cup Finals, which start on Tuesday, one of the tennis greats will say goodbye. Rafael Nadal will bring to a conclusion a glittering career.
BBC Sport looks at the statistics underlining the success of the Spaniard – who will retire as the second-most successful men’s singles player of all time.
What did Nadal win?
Since turning professional in 2001 as a 15-year-old, Nadal has spent 2,543 hours and 15 minutes on court in 1,307 ATP Tour matches – winning 1,080.
The first title of his career arrived in 2004 on the clay courts of Sopot, a tiny city in northern Poland, before he shot to fame the following season.
In 2005, Nadal broke into the world’s top 10 – where he would stay for a record 912 consecutive weeks.
Nadal would win a further 91 ATP Tour titles, including 22 Grand Slams – 14 at the French Open, four at the US Open and two at both Wimbledon and the Australian Open.
The US Open eluded him the longest, but when he conquered New York in 2010, he became the youngest man in the Open era to complete the career Grand Slam.
With Olympic singles gold already in his locker from Beijing 2008, that US Open victory also wrapped up a career golden Grand Slam.
It is an achievement matched by only four other players – Steffi Graf, Andre Agassi, Serena Williams and Novak Djokovic.
Alongside his individual success, Nadal has starred as a team player – winning four Davis Cup titles with Spain.
Since losing his first match in the tournament back in 2004, Nadal has been unbeaten in 29 singles matches, while his ongoing 32-match winning streak across both singles and doubles is the longest in Davis Cup history.
For Nadal, though, there will always be the question of what could have been. He missed 15 major tournaments because of injury or illness.
In comparison, Roger Federer was absent from six, while Djokovic has missed just one of the past 79 Grand Slams because of injury.
Where does Nadal rank among the ‘Big Three’?
Federer and Nadal – affectionately nicknamed ‘Fedal’ – faced each other 40 times in a rivalry lasting more than 15 years.
A 17-year-old Nadal was the victor in their first match in 2004, while a 37-year-old Federer triumphed in their last encounter in 2019 at Wimbledon.
A rivalry for the ages was defined by friendship and respect off the court, plus a clash of styles on it.
Nadal, with his blistering left-handed forehand and fiery celebratory roars, ended his Swiss opponent’s five-year winning streak at Wimbledon in the 2008 final – regarded by many as the greatest match of all time.
Federer – known for his effortless movement, his elegant one-handed backhand and calm aura – could not do the same to Nadal at his favoured Slam. Nadal won all six of their meetings at Roland Garros.
With Federer retired and Nadal about to play his final matches, Djokovic will be the only member of the ‘Big Three’ left standing.
By adding Olympic singles gold to his collection in Paris this summer, the Serb has now won everything Nadal did, and more.
Djokovic holds two more Grand Slam trophies than Nadal and is still chasing his 25th to take sole ownership of the all-time record for the most major singles titles he shares with Margaret Court.
Had it not been for Nadal, it’s likely Djokovic would have grabbed that accolade already.
Despite holding a 31-29 win record over the Spaniard, he fell to Nadal in five of their nine Grand Slam final encounters.
How good was Nadal on clay?
No player in tennis history is as synonymous with success on a surface as Nadal is on clay, and no-one has dominated a tournament as much as he did at the French Open.
Only three players were able to defeat Nadal at Roland Garros – Robin Soderling in 2009, Djokovic in 2015 and 2021, and Alexander Zverev earlier this year.
Nicknamed the King of Clay, he emerged triumphant 14 times in 19 appearances, winning 112 of his 116 matches, with just three of those going to five sets.
Such was Nadal’s supremacy in Paris, he won the title four times – in 2008, 2010, 2017 and 2020 – without dropping a single set.
He was also never taken to five sets in a final.
And, before that loss to Zverev in May, Nadal had never lost two matches back-to-back on clay.
Between 2005 and 2007, he went on a remarkable 81-match unbeaten run on the surface.
What did Nadal not win?
Nadal will retire with one big title missing from his collection – the ATP Finals.
Despite appearing at 11 editions of the season-ending championships, Nadal never lifted the trophy, winning 21 of his 39 matches.
He reached the final twice, in 2010 and 2013, losing to Federer and Djokovic respectively.
Djokovic has won a record seven titles while Federer claimed six.
Nadal also sits behind Djokovic when it comes to ATP Masters 1,000 tournaments – the level below Grand Slams.
He won 36 titles but never triumphed in Miami and Paris, while Djokovic has won each of the nine Masters 1,000 at least twice.
Where does Nadal rank all time?
Gracing the sport during the time of the ‘Big Three’ means there is a price to be paid when it comes to the ‘greatest of all-time’ debate in tennis.
It is likely Nadal would have won more than 22 Grand Slams if Djokovic (24) and Federer (20) had not been his contemporaries – and vice versa.
Djokovic and Federer – along with Pete Sampras, Ivan Lendl and Jimmy Connors – spent more time as the men’s world number one than Nadal (209 weeks).
While he has undoubtedly claimed his place as the best clay-court player ever, Nadal ranks fifth for the most ATP titles and sits behind his long-term rival Djokovic for the most Grand Slams.
A version of this article was first published on 10 October.
