There’s no question that Rafael Nadal has reigned supreme on clay courts throughout his storied career. Dubbed the “King of Clay,” Nadal has captured 14 of his record 22 Grand Slam titles at Roland Garros, solidifying himself as the most successful player in the tournament’s history. But while clay defined his legacy, the Spanish superstar recently revealed which surface he considers his second-best.
During his career, Nadal was the undeniable favorite whenever clay tournaments rolled around. To this day, he holds the record for the most titles won on clay with an astounding 63 championships. However, Nadal believes his early dominance on clay led to misconceptions about his abilities on other surfaces.
“Because I started winning a lot on clay, people started thinking I was a clay-court player,” Nadal shared with Andy Roddick on the Served podcast. “But the truth is, of course, my game adapted well to the clay, but I loved playing on fast courts… I finished my career winning a couple of US Opens [late on], but my second-best surface was grass”.
Nadal pointed out that his adaptability extended to grass early in his career. “I played the Wimbledon final in 2006, so it’s not like it took me five years to play well on grass,” Nadal explained. “I lost in the second round in 2005 against Gilles Muller. In 2004, I couldn’t play because I was injured, but in 2003 I beat [future Wimbledon semi-finalist] Mario Ancic already in the first round. So my game adapted well to all surfaces”.
Rafael Nadal of Spain plays a backhand against Taylor Fritz of The United States during Wimbledon 2022. (Clive Brunskill/Getty Images)
Injuries halted Nadal’s grass progress
Nadal’s rise at Wimbledon gained momentum in 2006, but he acknowledged that knee injuries later derailed his progress on grass. “I was in the Wimbledon final in 2006, 2007, won it in 2008, in 2009 I was not able to play,” Nadal recalled.
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“Then I won in 2010 and played the final in 2011, so not counting 2009, I played five finals in a row,” he added. “Then arrived a point when I was not able to play on grass for many years. My knees were not holding; I was not able to slow down”.
Nadal also revealed how frustrating it was for him to miss grass tournaments, as he felt more comfortable on grass compared to hard courts. In fact, he admitted he preferred facing Novak Djokovic on grass rather than on a hard surface.
“For me, it was painful, because I felt that my chances were bigger, if I was healthy enough, on grass than hard. Honestly, I preferred to play against Novak [Djokovic] on grass than on hard,” he added.
Nadal’s historic clay dominance
While Nadal’s versatility is undeniable, his dominance on clay remains unparalleled. In 2010, Nadal cemented his legacy by becoming the only player in history to win all the most important clay-court titles in a single season.
That year, he claimed the ATP Masters 1000 titles in Monte Carlo (his sixth), Rome (his fifth), and Madrid (his second), capping it all off with his fifth Roland Garros crown in Paris. This extraordinary achievement further solidified Nadal’s place as the greatest clay-court player of all time.
