Should we regard the King of Clay as the GOAT?

Rafael_Nadal_2011_Roland_Garros_2011.jpg: [1]derivative work: Domaina, CC BY-SA 2.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0>, via Wikimedia Commons

Rafael Nadal just made history at Roland Garros in October 2020. He won a record 13th (yes 13th!) Grand Slam at this prestigious tournament.

He did so through a comprehensive straight-sets win over one of the very few players who can seriously threaten him on clay, Novak Djokovic.

To put things into context, Nadal is 100-2 at this tournament. His 13 Grand Slams give him the record of holding the most number of Grand Slams at a single venue in the Open Era.

In other words, he dominates clay-court tennis.

Christopher Johnson, CC BY-SA 2.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0>, via Wikimedia Commons

Rafa is known for his incredible determination and work ethic, instilled in him from an early age by his Uncle Toni. He is solid and puts a tremendous amount of spin on most of his shots. This forces opponents to stretch on clay and prevents them from hitting attacking shots as much as they would like. When they do attack, he usually can respond with another heavily spun ball.

People have criticized that Rafa's style works only works on clay and doesn't work on surfaces like hard courts and grass.

To put things into perspective - he has 4 US Open titles - all on the hard courts in New York and 2 Wimbledon titles.

Let's put that in the GOAT debate when it's all said and done!

lexi1960im, CC BY 2.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0>, via Wikimedia Commons

Nadal now stands equal with Federer at the top of the all-time list on 20 career grand slam wins, so he is widely considered a strong contender for GOAT's title.

For many, he will be remembered primarily as comfortably the greatest clay-court player who has ever lived. On other surfaces, he is close to Federer and Djokovic, but only occasionally matches them.

Nonetheless, the achievements of the man from Mallorca are astonishing and show the value of determination and self-belief.

We believe the GOAT debate can indeed kick-off when the Big 3 finally retire, and then we can start comparing all the stats, titles, head-to-head records, etc.!

We also don't know how many more French Opens Rafa will win, but we salute his longevity and unshakeable mental strength.

He is a true legend.

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