The King of Clay: Five must-watch Rafael Nadal matches

Jonathan Victoria • 11 Oct 2024 Features

Farewell, Rafa…

It’s hard to see that notification alerting you to another one of your sporting idols has stepped away from the game they love to play and you to watch.

I won’t say I am the biggest tennis fan, but I’ve always tuned in for the Grand Slams, and no one fascinated me more than Rafael Nadal (and Roger Federer, in truth, but he’s already long retired).

Rafa, El Nino, Spain’s Raging Bull, whatever nickname you wanted to call him, there was without question no player more dazzling than him.

Where Federer and Novak Djokovic commanded the court, Nadal ran it - literally. He would not stop running. There wasn’t a ball he wouldn’t chase, producing countless magical moments. That’s what made him special.

But nothing was more impressive about him than his dominance on clay. Like Federer at Wimbledon, Nadal seemed unbeatable at Roland-Garros, and at times he genuinely was.

14 French Open titles. That alone puts him joint with Pete Sampras for the fourth most Grand Slams in a career. No other player comes close and may ever come close to winning that many titles at one Grand Slam.

At one point the player with the most Grand Slam titles ever, and he wasn’t even meant to make it this far. A degenerative foot condition that should have prevented him from even playing at the top level couldn’t stop him from achieving tennis immortality, although it could and always would catch up to him. 

Rafael Nadal bows out from the game as truly one of the greatest players to ever grace a tennis court. In honour of his retirement, I wanted to take a look back at his stellar career and pick five matches of his that I think are absolutely must-watches for any tennis fan.

Honourable mentions

Before I get into my top five, I wanted to point out a few games that deserve a mention but don’t quite make it onto the list.

2005 French Open Final – His first-ever Grand Slam, coming at 19 years old and on his debut at the tournament.

2008 Beijing Olympic Final – Nadal’s gold medal match, putting him in elite company as one of only three men to achieve the career Golden Slam (players who won all four Grand Slams and an Olympic gold medal over the career. Other two are Andre Agassi and Djokovic).

2013 French Open semi-final – The Nadal vs Djokovic rivalry hit its peak in this brutally dramatic five-set battle, which he of course ultimately won on the way to his eighth title.

2010 US Open Final – This win over Djokovic completed his career Grand Slam and made him the youngest to do so in the Open Era at 24 years old.

5. 2022 Australian Open Final vs Daniil Medvedev

Credit: Rafael Nadal v Daniil Medvedev Extended Highlights (Final) | Australian Open 2022 (Australian Open TV, YouTube)

2022 was Nadal’s last healthy season, - or at least start to the season - and with that, he would prove to everyone that he’s still got it.

He won his 14th and final French Open during the year but before that, he won just his second Australian Open, his first coming in 2009, but most importantly, it gave him the record for most Grand Slam titles with 21.

History was made at Rod Laver Arena as Nadal dug deeper than he had had to for years to defeat Medvedev, falling two sets down to start the match.

He clawed his way back and ultimately won, with the final score reading 2-6, 6-7(5-7), 6-4, 6-4, 7-5.

Nadal’s comeback immortalised him as the first man in the Open Era to win the Australian Open after losing the first two sets. He also became just the fourth man ever to achieve the double career Grand Slam (won every Grand Slam title at least twice).

4. 2008 French Open Final vs Roger Federer

Credit: Nadal vs Federer 2008 Men's final | Roland-Garros Classic Match (Roland-Garros, YouTube)

This whole list could’ve been filled with his French Open titles as each one felt special. But I felt that he deserved the variety that showed off his full winning pedigree, so I stuck with just the one - and boy was this a good one.

Nadal, Federer and Djokovic shared the scene together for the better part of two decades, and nine out of ten times, a final between any two of the three would be a drawn-out, hard-fought close contest.

The 2008 French Open Final was that one time.

In a performance so dominant it made it seem like he was up against some amateur who had a lucky run to the final, Nadal dismantled Federer in straight sets, 6-1, 6-3, 6-0. That’s right, a bagel in the final set. Against Roger Federer. A BAGEL. AGAINST FEDERER.

It remains one of the most dominant and one-sided Grand Slam finals in history and postponed Federed from achieving the career Grand Slam (for a year). It was also Nadal’s fourth Grand Slam and fourth straight French Open, a run which would go on to see him win nine in 10 years.

Oh, and he also beat Djokovic in the semi-finals in straight sets, too. Just thought I’d get that in there as well.

3. 2006 Rome Masters Final vs Roger Federer

Credit: Nadal beats Federer in 2006 Rome epic | Internazionali BNL d'Italia Top Hot Shots & Highlights (Tennis TV, YouTube)

The fact that a non-Grand Slam match made it in here, and into the top three no less, should say everything about how epic this match was.

By 2006, Federer was already establishing himself as the best in the game at the time, going on to finish the year with nine titles already, while Nadal was still just starting out, just the one French Open to his name.

However, Nadal was clearly a special talent, particularly on clay, and if that wasn’t evident enough already, he would prove that during the 2006 Rome Masters.

Heading into the final, Nadal had dropped just one set throughout the tournament and was ready to take on a man that to that point had gotten the better of four out of their last five matchups.

What proceeded was a masterclass from both men, regarded as one of the best clay-court matches ever. Nadal saved two match points and outlasted Federer in a thrilling five-set match that lasted more than five hours. 

2. 2012 Australian Open Final vs Novak Djokovic

Credit: Novak Djokovic vs Rafael Nadal - The Greatest Final Ever! | Australian Open 2012 (Australian Open TV, YouTube)

The only entry on this list where Nadal lost, this match earns a high spot for good reason. 

By 2012, Nadal, Djokovic and Federer were now solidly sharing the stage together, every Grand Slam final being a combination between two of the three.

Djokovic was arguably flying the highest out of the three at this point, having one three of the four Grand Slams the year prior. Although, that was also something Nadal did the year prior to that, so he too was in the form of his life.

Those facts culminated in one of the most gruelling Grand Slam finals of all time.

The match played on for five hours and 53 minutes and didn't finish till after 1am local time, making it the longest-ever match at the Australian Open and the longest Grand Slam final ever. It was also the third consecutive final contested between the pair.

Djokovic won in five sets, the final score reading 5–7, 6–4, 6–2, 6–7(5-7), 7–5, showing the resilience of both men to keep taking the fight to the other. The Serbian has tremendous skill on hard courts, but that day Nadal looked all his equal.

1. 2008 Wimbledon Final vs Roger Federer

Credit: Roger Federer vs Rafael Nadal | Wimbledon 2008 | Best Shots (Wimbledon, YouTube)

I’ve listed some of the best specific court matches of all time, some of the most gruelling matches, but when it comes to the very best Nadal match, nothing else could top this list. 

In fact, this possibly isn’t even just Nadal’s best match, nor just Federer’s. This is generally is regarded as the greatest tennis match of all time.

Nadal and Federer had already played out an instant classic five-set thriller the year prior that would’ve also made this list had it not been for the 2008 final.

By 2008, both players had been proving themselves as serial winners, but Wimbledon was the one that Nadal simply couldn’t best the Swiss Maestro at. 

2008 was finally his year, though, as the two fought it out over seven hours in total. The match had everything you’d want in a stunning battle, including a rain delay that helped cool everyone down and process all that had already happened, but most importantly some incredible play from the two best at the time.

Neither would or really could put a foot wrong, matching each other every step of the way. To put it into perspective, Federer had 89 winners and saw off two match points in the fourth set, and he still lost.

By the end of it, both men were clearly exhausted yet still producing magic moments. Nadal finally got it, and from the roar of the Wimbledon crowd came the respect of the entire tennis world. He had won his first non-French Open Grand Slam and handed Federer, the undeniable best at that time, his first major final loss (outside of Roland Garros).

Check out both clips with this entry but I would also highly recommend checking out the extended highlights for the match.

Credit: Roger Federer vs Rafael Nadal | Wimbledon 2008 | Best Rallies (Wimbledon, YouTube)