5 tennis records that are beyond Rafael Nadal's reach

With a record 22 Majors, Rafael Nadal is unarguably one of the greatest tennis players of all time. He has gone toe-to-toe with fellow legends Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic in the Grand Slam title race, leading both after his Australian Open and Roland Garros triumphs this year.

Ever since winning his first Grand Slam at Roland Garros in 2005, Nadal has been unstoppable. The former World No.1 has many records to his name, including a whopping 14 titles at the French Open.

That said, there are a few milestones that the Spaniard will most likely not surpass in his career. We look at five such records that are beyond Rafael Nadal's reach.

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#1) Nitto ATP Finals Titles

Nitto ATP World Tour Finals - Rafael Nadal

The Nitto ATP Finals is the most sought-after tournament after the Grand Slams. The season-ending championship challenges the top eight players of the year to compete against each other for the coveted title.

Although Rafa has been a part of ten editions of the tournament, the Spaniard has never managed to win a single title. He finished as the runner-up in 2010 and 2013, his best record in the competition.

With six titles, Roger Federer has the most ATP Finals titles, followed by Novak Djokovic with five. It is safe to say that the record for most Nitto ATP Finals titles is out of Rafa’s bag.

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#2) Most weeks ranked World No. 1

Rafael Nadal has the most consecutive weeks in the top 10. He is also the only tennis player to be ranked World No. 1 in three separate decades.

To date, the Spaniard has enjoyed as many as 209 weeks at the top of the rankings, with five men bettering his tally. Novak Djokovic has been at the No. 1 spot for a record 373 weeks, followed by Roger Federer with 310 weeks.

Nadal will need to be ranked World No. 1 for more than three years to challenge Djokovic's record. That doesn't seem likely, with many young players also in contention to challenge for the top spot that's currently held by Daniil Medvedev.

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#3) Most Australian Open titles won

2022 Australian Open: Rafael Nadal wins his second AO title.

The Australian Open hasn’t been the kindest to the Mallorca native. Despite playing in six finals, Nadal has managed to win just twice.

Djokovic has claimed the Australian Open title a staggering 9 times, with Federer (6) trailing the Serb. It's difficult to imagine the Spaniard winning seven more titles Down Under to go level with the Serb.

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#4) Most Wimbledon titles

Grass isn’t Nadal's preferred surface. Having played in five Wimbledon finals, he has had his hands on the trophy just twice, in 2008 and 2010.

Wimbledon has seen only four men's champions in the past two decades: Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic and Andy Murray. Murray and Nadal have won two titles each, with the remaining years dominated by the Swiss and the Serb.

Federer currently tops the men’s singles leader board with eight grass Slam title wins. Djokovic is just one shy after winning his seventh Wimbledon title this year.

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#5) Grand Slam match wins

Federer and Djokovic have won considerably more Grand Slam matches than Nadal

The King of Clay has the most wins at a single Grand Slam, owing to his 112-3 record at Roland Garros. He has won a total of 310 matches across all four Grand Slams, which is well behind Roger Federer’s 369 match wins.

Having won 59 fewer matches than his biggest rival, Nadal will have to participate in at least eight more Grand Slam events, and win each of them, to even come close to Federer’s landmark.