Earlier this year, Spanish tennis legend, Rafael Nadal bounced back from a foot injury and reigned at the Australian Open. By doing so, he broke the three-way tie of 20 Grand Slam victories between him, Federer, and Djokovic. Currently, he is taking part in the French Open and on Monday the Spaniard banked his first victory of the tournament. Further, along with a seat in the second round, he leapfrogged Roger Federer, who previously held the record of securing the most wins in a Grand Slam.
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Rafael Nadal, the record-breaker
In the first round of French Open, Nadal thrashed Australian tennis professional Jordan Thompson in straight sets (6-2, 6-2, 6-2). Consequently, the King of Clay rose in the list of most Grand Slam wins in singles category. Rafa outdid the 20 times Grand Slam champion Roger Federer’s record of 105 victories at Wimbledon Championship by winning his 106th match at Roland Garros.
Most wins at a single Grand Slam 🔝
106 Rafael Nadal (Roland-Garros)
105 Roger Federer (Wimbledon)
98 Jimmy Connors (US Open)
89 Roger Federer (US Open)#RolandGarros pic.twitter.com/C9Bkpu8VKU— Roland-Garros (@rolandgarros) May 23, 2022
Following Federer, there is Jimmy Connor in third position. The former World No.1 and 8-time Grand Slam champion came out victorious 98 times at the US Open throughout his career.
Further, the fourth position is also occupied by Federer. The Swiss maestro has 89 wins to his name at the hard courts of the US Open.
Nadal’s chronic foot injury
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After Nadal’s subpar performance at the Italian Open, he was heavily criticized. Many argued that he will probably sit out of the French Open as the issue related to his foot resurfaced. However, he has put the rumors to bed by appearing hungrier than ever at Roland Garros.
Rafa himself commented on the recurring nature of his foot injury. Nadal suffers from a rare and degenerative disease known as Mueller-Weiss syndrome, which causes deformities in the navicular bone.
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Nadal has been suffering from the same condition since 2005. Nevertheless, the ATP No.5 has built a successful career at the highest level and is confident about doing the same in the future.