5 occasions when Rafael Nadal argued with the chair umpire

Rafael Nadal is among the greatest players to ever grace a tennis court, if not the greatest. The Spaniard has mesmerized spectators with his tennis skills for nearly two decades, be it on clay courts, hard or grass.

The 36-year-old has enjoyed an illustrious career, winning 92 singles titles, which is the fourth-most among male players in the Open Era. He has 22 Grand Slams to his name, more than any other man in the history of the game. Additionally, he has also won 36 Masters 1000 titles and an Olympic gold at the 2008 Beijing Olympics.

Nadal is one of the greatest players of all time and he is revered not only for his skill and mentality but also for his character. The Spaniard is known to be one of the most professional players on tour who always behaves well on and off the court.

However, like any other tennis player, Rafael Nadal has gotten into arguments with chair umpires throughout his career. On that note, let's take a look at five such instances.

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#1. 2010 ATP World Tour Finals vs Tomas Berdych

Rafael Nadal does not share the most cordial of relationships with Carlos Bernardes and has often had his fair share of outbursts with him. The most notable incident between the two came at the 2010 ATP World Tour Finals. The Spaniard was up against Tomas Berdych in a round-robin match.

Nadal was serving at 15-15 while trailing 5-6 in the first set, and a rally ensued. Berdych sent the ball deep near the baseline and Bernardes called the ball 'out' which saw Nadal stop playing.

The Czech challenged the call and the hawk-eye showed that the ball was just in. Instead of replaying the point, Bernardes awarded it to Berdych, a decision which enraged Rafael Nadal.

The Spaniard was involved in a heated argument with the Brazilian. He claimed that he only stopped playing because the ball was called 'out', and even then he put the ball back in play.

"That's nonsense. You said out. My ball was in. I've returned it back. What match are you watching, Carlos? No, no, no. I don't want to play," Nadal said.

The then-World No. 1 stopped play and argued with another official, even going on to say that he "did not want to play at all."

"It's nonsense. What you're telling me is nonsense. It's nonsense. It's nonsense Carlos. You're hell wrong. Carlos, my ball went in," Nadal further told Bernardes.

The Spaniard's protests were all in vain as Bernardes stuck to his decision and play soon resumed. Rafael Nadal eventually went on to win the match 7-6(3), 6-1.

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#2. 2016 Rio Olympics vs Kei Nishikori

Rafael Nadal faced Kei Nishikori in the bronze medal playoff at the 2016 Rio Olympics. The Japanese produced a dominant performance to win the opening set 6-2 and led 5-2 in the second. However, the Spaniard bounced back to win the set 7-6(1).

Nishikori then took a 10-minute toilet break which angered Rafael Nadal and he argued about the same with chair umpire Carlos Bernardes. He kept arguing with the Brazilian even when the third set started and later spoke about the matter with a supervisor.

"It's ok, it doesn't matter, no? It's ok. If he stays 20 minutes, it's ok, nothing happens? Ah, it's not ok, so what happens? Nothing? I come back after 6-2, 5-2 then, he goes, 'so I can go to the toilet for 11 minutes of 12 minutes?', so that's ok,nothing happens? Nadal told the supervisor.

Nishikori eventually went on to win the match 6-2, 6-7(1), 6-3 to claim the bronze medal at the 2016 Rio Olympics.

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#3. 2020 Australian Open vs Dominic Thiem

Rafael Nadal had a number of arguments with Aurelie Tourte, who was the chair umpire during his 2020 Australian Open quarterfinal against Dominic Thiem.

The Spaniard is known for his on-court rituals which have fetched him a time violation or two on a few occasions. He was close to getting one in the opening set of his match against Dominic Thiem. He felt that he was not being given enough time to cool down given the hot temperatures during the Australian Major.

Rafael Nadal's most notable altercation with Tourte came in the second set when she gave him a violation. He said that she should have started the clock later to give the players a break. He also told the Frenchwoman that she "did not like good tennis."

Nadal eventually lost the match 7-6(3), 7-6(4), 4-6, 7-6(6) to Thiem and was eliminated from the 2020 Australian Open.

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#4. 2011 US Open final vs Novak Djokovic

Rafael Nadal had a brief argument with chair umpire Carlos Ramos during his 2011 US Open final against Novak Djokovic.

The Spaniard was serving to stay in the first set, trailing 2-4. He hit a forehand, which Djokovic returned before stating it was out. Ramos called the ball 'out' just a moment after the Serb did. This led Nadal to ask him whether he made the call based on his vision or Djokovic's.

"One question, when do you call 'out', when he does it or when you see it? I don't understand," the Mallorcan asked Ramos.

The Portuguese responded by saying that he needed to think as he wasn't completely sure. Nadal then said that he had nothing to think about as the ball was visible.

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#5. 2008 Wimbledon vs Ernests Gulbis

Rafael Nadal faced Latvia's Ernests Gulbis in the second round of the 2008 Wimbledon Championships.

The first set was tightly-contested, with both players holding on to their serves. Gulbis was serving at 30-30 with the score 5-5 and sent a backhand drop shot, which Nadal managed to return. However, chair umpire Jake Garner awarded the point to the Latvian, claiming that the Spaniard hit the ball after it bounced twice.

The then-22-year-old was infuriated by the decision and told the umpire:

"No, come on. For god's sake, I don't believe you're saying that. I can't believe that. I can't believe."

Television replays showed that Rafael Nadal was right as he made the shot with room to spare. Nonetheless, the Spaniard won the match 5-7, 6-2, 7-6(2), 6-3 to reach the third round of Wimbledon.