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Rafael Nadal is unarguably one of the greatest tennis players the sport has ever seen. The man who embarked on a momentous Grand Slam journey by winning his first title at the 2005 French Open, will now be vying for a record-extending 23rd Major title at the 2022 US Open.
This will be Nadal’s 66th Grand Slam appearance and his 16th at the US Open. Only a few can dream of competing at those many Grand Slam events in their careers, let alone winning 22 of them.
On that note, let's take a look at three reasons why Nadal can win a fifth US Open title this year.
#1 Previous success at the US Open
Rafael Nadal has fared admirably at the US Open throughout the years. The 36-year-old has been the champion at Flushing Meadows four times in 2010, 2013, 2017, and most recently in 2019.
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Nadal defeated Novak Djokovic twice in the 2010 and 2013 finals to clinch his first two US Open titles, while he outplayed Kevin Anderson and Daniil Medvedev in the 2017 and 2019 editions respectively.
Apart from his title wins, the Mallorcan finished as the runner-up in the 2011 event against Novak Djokovic. He has also been a semifinalist on three other occasions in 2008, 2009 and 2018.
With a fifth title in New York, Nadal will secure the top spot along with Roger Federer, Jimmy Connors and Pete Sampras as the players with the most titles at the US Open in men's singles.
#2 Transcendental run at Grand Slams in 2022
The Spaniard has had an exceptional run in 2022. He was tied with Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic at 20 Slams; however, Nadal became the first to surpass the record and create his own individual record of 21 Slams when he lifted his second Australian title in 2022.
Rafael Nadal dismissed Marcos Giron, Yannick Hanfmann, Karen Khachanov, Adrian Mannarino, Matteo Berrettini and 2021 finalist Daniil Medvedev.
The undisputed King of Clay further extended his own record and raised his Grand Slam tally to 22 by claiming his 14th Roland Garros title.
Nadal, who now has a 14-0 finals record on Parisian Clay, defeated Jordan Thompson, Corentin Moutet, Botic van de Zandschulp, Felix Auger Aliassime, defending champion Novak Djokovic, Alexander Zverev (ret.) and Casper Ruud to clinch the title.
The tennis legend entered Wimbledon with almost no grasscourt matches under his belt but maintained his formidable form. The two-time Wimbledon champion fought his way through to the last four. In his run to the semifinals, he ousted Francisco Cerundolo, Ricardas Berankis, Lorenzo Sonego, Botic van de Zanschulp and Taylor Fritz.
However, his pursuit of a Calendar year Grand Slam met its end when the Spaniard was forced to withdraw from the semifinals due to an abdominal tear. Despite the terrible circumstances behind his withdrawal, Nadal remains unbeaten at Grand Slam events this year.
#3 Season of awe-inspiring comebacks
Rafael Nadal had some nail-biting finishes at this year’s Grand Slams. Many of the Nadal’s matches went the distance, yet the 22-time Major winner refused to surrender in each encounter and emerged on top.
He competed against Denis Shapovalov in the quarterfinals of the Australian Open. Nadal lost a two-sets-to-love lead and was pushed to a fifth set by the Canadian. The Spaniard eventually booked his spot in the last four with a 6-3, 6-4, 4-6, 3-6, 6-3 victory. In the final, the then 35-year-old registered arguably one of the biggest comebacks of his career when he stopped Daniil Medvedev with a daring 2-6, 6-7 (5), 6-4, 6-4, 7-5 title win.
Rafael Nadal was then challenged by the pupil of his former coach (uncle Toni), Felix Auger-Aliassime, in the fourth round of the French Open. Auger-Aliassime put Nadal in an uncomfortable position by stretching the match to five sets. However the champion came through 3-6, 6-3, 6-3, 3-6, 6-3 to set up a clash with Novak Djokovic. The Spaniard then defeated Djokovic 6-2, 4-6, 6-2, 7-6 (4) in a four-set thriller.
At Wimbledon, Rafael Nadal wasn’t in his finest form and survived many matches by simply not giving up. Notably, the former World No.1 battled against Taylor Fritz in the quarterfinals and edged over the American in the deciding tiebreak 3-6, 7-5, 3-6, 7-5, 7-6 (4).
Rafael Nadal’s hard fought finishes this year are a testament to the mentality with which the 36-year-old is approaching his matches.
Seeded second, Rafael Nadal has been placed in the bottom half of the US Open men’s singles draw. His projected path to the final includes (WC) Rinky Hijikata, Aslan Karatsev, Miomir Kecmanovic, Diego Schwartzman, Cameron Norrie, Carlos Alcaraz and the ultimate meeting with Daniil Medvedev.
With all the evidence gathered, Nadal’s run to a historic 23rd Slam, which will see him tied with Serena Williams as the player with the highest number of Grand Slam titles in the Open Era, seems like a reasonable pursuit.
Also Checkout:- US Open 2022 Schedule
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