Rafael Nadal is the uncontested King of Clay. The Spanish sensation has conquered the French Open 13 times and he always makes the headlines if he loses even 1 match on clay. The dirt is definitely Nadal’s favorite surface. However, not many are aware that he used to prefer playing on indoor and on fast courts to competing on clay when he was young.
Nadal about winning Wimbledon
There is an interesting interview of a young Rafael Nadal talking about his favorite surface and the most striking part of that interview was that his dream would have been winning Wimbledon. That eventually happened on 2 occasions as Nadal conquered the Championships in 2008 and 2010. However, given his stunning record at the French Open you would have expected Roland Garros to be his main target.
“Since a young age, we’ve been used to playing tournaments in Europe and most of them are played indoors, on fast courts, and the truth Is that I like such conditions,” said Nadal.
“I like indoors events and grass courts more than clay, to be honest, even though I like clay a bit too.”
When asked about which tournament he wanted to win, he said: “Wimbledon, but it’s very difficult I need to work hard.”
16 years old Rafa : « I like indoors events and grass courts more than clay to be honest even though I like clay a bit too »
Well, 18 years later here we are : 13 RG titles. Do you like clay now ? #rafaelnadal #legend #tennis #vamosrafa pic.twitter.com/Yrd5rep33g— RaphaĂ«l Dabadie🇫🇷 (@RaphaelDabadie) February 27, 2021
Rafael Nadal in 2021
Ranked no.2, Rafael played his last match on the 17th of February when he was overcome by Stefanos Tsitsipas 3-6 2-6 7-6(4) 6-4 7-5 in the quarter of the Australian Open (draw).
Currently, during this season the Spaniard achieved a 4-1 match record.
