Rafael Nadal extends record of most bagels among active players to 113, but still far away from Jimmy Connors' all-time mark

Rafael Nadal handed a bagel (6-0 scoreline) to Kei Nishikori in the first set of their Round of 16 match at the Barcelona Open on Thursday. Although Nishikori managed to hit back and take the next set 6-2, Nadal eventually regrouped to win the decider and thus advance to the quarterfinals.

The first-set bagel was the 113th time that Rafael Nadal had achieved the feat in his career. That is the highest tally among active players by some distance, reinforcing just how much importance the Spaniard attaches to every single point and game in a match.

The full list of all the 113 bagels that Rafael Nadal has inflicted, along with the score, the tournament and the opponent's name, is given below:

Defeating 🇯🇵 Kei Nishikori 6-0 2-6 6-2 at @bcnopenbs 🇪🇸 Rafael Nadal gives his 113th bagel#BCNOpenBS pic.twitter.com/Q1w49rH5nG

— TennisMyLife (@TennisMyLife68) April 22, 2021

Novak Djokovic and Roger Federer follow Rafael Nadal in the list of most bagels handed out (among active players), with 98 and 95 respectively. Andy Murray also joins his 'Big 4' peers on the list; the Scot is at the fourth position, with 70 bagels to his name.

Here is the top 10 list of active players who have recorded the most bagels:

113 - Rafael Nadal

98 - Novak Djokovic

95 - Roger Federer

70 - Andy Murray

46 - Fernando Verdasco

43 - Richard Gasquet

40 - Tommy Robredo

37 - Gael Monfils

36 - Gilles Simon

33 - David Goffin

Rafael Nadal still has a long way to go if he wants to break Jimmy Connors' all-time record of 198 bagels

Jimmy Connors

While Rafael Nadal is the leader when it comes to the number of bagels inflicted by active players, the Spaniard still is well behind Jimmy Connors' all-time record of 198 bagels.

Connors played on the tour for more than 20 years, and during that time he made life miserable for nearly 200 players with his never-say-die attitude. The eight-time Major champion is not unlike Rafael Nadal in that aspect; they are both known for playing every point as if their life depended on it.

Several other legends from the distant past have also amassed more bagels in their careers than Rafael Nadal. Those include Bjorn Borg, Ivan Lendl, Guillermo Vilas, Ilie Nastase, Manuel Orantes and Andre Agassi.

Having said that, Nadal is within spitting distance of Agassi's tally of 116 bagels. He could potentially outdo the American on the all-time bagels list during this year's clay season.

🇺🇸 Jimmy Connors has given 198 bagels on @atptour tournaments pic.twitter.com/tJkOK8yzRN

— TennisMyLife (@TennisMyLife68) April 22, 2021