Born in Spain in 1986, Rafael Nadal was an athlete from a tender age and started playing tennis at three, turned pro at 15. He is universally known as ‘The King of Clay’ for his skills of playing on clay courts, tenacity and topspin heavy shots.
On the occasion of Tennis star Rafa’s 33rd birthday, here are some interesting facts about his career and his journey-
1. Nadal stepped into the professional world of tennis at the age of 15
2. Won his first French Open title in 2005 at 19.
3. He holds two Olympic Gold medals in both singles and doubles (Beijing Olympics in 2008 and Rio Olympics 2016).
4. He beat Roger Federer when he was just 17 years old at Miami Open in 2004.
5. He is the youngest tennis player to complete both Career Grand Slam and Career Golden Slam.
6. Nadal also holds the record of winning the most Masters 1000 matches – 362 and featuring in the most number of finals – 49.
7. He published his autobiography in 2010, titled- ”Rafa- My Story”
8. He also has an asteroid named after him- 128036 Rafael Nadal