Rafael Nadal - a big one even on hard court
For the first time in his career, Rafael Nadal was able to defend a hard court title at the Rogers Cup. But that's not the only reason why the Spaniard is one of the very best on this surface.
by Nikolaus Fink
last edit: Aug 13, 2019, 01:58 pm
Rafael Nadal and Sand - that fits like a fist on the eye. The Mallorcan has dominated the world's ashes for more than a decade and has, among other things, been crowned 12 times the winner at the Stade Roland Garros.
But the 33-year-old can also do it on hard court. He demonstrated this once again at the ATP Masters 1000 tournament in Montreal. For the fifth time in a row, the Spaniard won the Rogers Cup, which changes annually between Montreal and Toronto, and once again proved that he can not only do it on his beloved clay courts.
Nadal sets new records
Thanks to the triumph in Canada, Nadal has won more tournament victories than Novak Djokovic in his career at the three largest North American hard court events (Rogers Cup, Cincinnati, US Open). The Serb, who is considered one of the best hardcourt players in history, has so far won eight tournaments at the three events mentioned - one less than Nadal.
In addition, the world ranking second with the victory in Montreal crowned the only player in history who was able to win at least ten Masters 1000 tournaments on both clay and hard court. In addition, Nadal became the first professional to win five or more titles in a single event on ashes (Monte Carlo, Barcelona, Rome, French Open) and hard court (Rogers Cup).
Furthermore, the 18-time Grand Slam winner became the second player after Ivan Lendl, who won at least 20 titles on clay and hard court. Incidentally, Nadal pulverized his own record with his first hard court title defense and now has a total of 35 successes at Masters 1000 events, two tournament wins ahead of Novak Djokovic.
Nadal can do it on a fast surface
In Montreal, Nadal also refuted the theory that he could only be successful in slow places. With a "Court Pace Index" of 43.6 (medium-fast), the Center Court had the highest value of all Masters 1000 tournaments since the event in Shanghai in 2016. For comparison: The Center Court at the Australian Open 2017 had an index from 42 to, in Shanghai the value was 40.2 last year. The place in Montreal was therefore significantly faster.
After the victory in Canada, Nadal skips the tournament in Cincinnati due to fatigue. The 33-year-old's focus is already on the US Open. In New York, the Mallorcan probably wants to prove once again that he is also one of the very best on hard courts - ideally with his fourth title in Flushing Meadows.