A recap of Rafael Nadal's incredible 20-1 start to the 2022 season that includes the 21 that matters

Rafael Nadal's first hardcourt swing of the 2022 season came to an end on Sunday, culminating in a rather disappointing straight-sets loss against Taylor Fritz at the 2022 Indian Wells Masters.

While most players will be moving on to the immediate Miami Masters, the Mallorcan has already announced that he will be skipping the tournament. The decision is only fair, seeing as the 35-year-old will want to better prepare himself for the upcoming European clay season, unquestionably his favorite time of the year.

Although hardcourts are not his preferred surface, 2022 has witnessed the Spaniard's best ever start to a season. The loss against Fritz marked the first defeat the World No. 3 has encountered since the turn of the year, a run that included 20 wins and three titles. Here's a brief look at how the first three months of Nadal's calendar have turned out:

Melbourne Summer Set: 89th career title, 1st in 8 months

Rafael Nadal's achievements in 2022 take on a new light once his struggles in the previous year are taken into consideration. The former World No. 1 exacerbated his foot injury in the semi-final loss against Novak Djokovic at the French Open and was forced to cut his season short to give his foot time to heal.

The Mallorcan did not step on to the tennis court until the Mubadala Tennis Championships at the end of the year, where he lost both his matches. On his way back to Spain, Nadal contracted a COVID infection that prevented him from practicing as much as he would have wanted.

The 21-time Grand Slam champion then began his season at the Melbourne Summer Set, a rare lead-up tournament in the Spaniard's preparation for the Australian Open. He cruised to the title fairly easily, winning the ATP 250 event without dropping a set. Nadal faced only three players (quarterfinals against Tallon Griekspoor was a walkover), none of whom were ranked within the top 50.

The title marked the World No. 3's 19th consecutive season winning a title, a run that stretches all the way back to 2004. The triumph also marked his first title since the 2021 Rome Masters, after a time span of eight months.

Australian Open: Record-breaking 21st Grand Slam title, a tournament of comebacks

Rafael Nadal won his record 21st Grand Slam at the Australian Open

Rafael Nadal then moved on to the Australian Open, the Major he has been least successful at over his career. In 16 previous attempts, the Mallorcan had managed to lift the Norman Brookes Challenge Cup only once before and had finished as the runner-up on four occasions.

The 2022 edition, however, was meant to be. Playing in his first Grand Slam that featured neither Novak Djokovic (visa trouble) nor Roger Federer (knee injury), the Spaniard proved his mettle by winning a record 21st Major.

It was a run that asked a lot of the former World No. 1, as he had to defeat four players ranked in the top 30 en route to the trophy. World No. 28 Karen Khachanov (third round) managed to take a set off the World No. 3, while World No. 4 Denis Shapovalov (quarterfinals) stretched him all the way to the deciding fifth set.

World No. 7 Matteo Berrettini proved to be a tough competitor in the semifinals but Nadal got through after losing only one set. It was then followed by a final for the ages against Daniil Medvedev, where the former World No. 1 had to overturn a two-set deficit in the second-longest Major final in history to etch his name in the record books.

Having won the title at Melbourne Park, the 21-time Grand Slam champion became the second man in history to achieve the Double Career Grand Slam, behind only Djokovic. It also gave him his sixth Slam on hardcourts and marked his 15th year winning at least one Slam.

Mexican Open: Best start to the year, 30th title without dropping a set

Rafael Nadal notched up his third successive title of the year at Acapulco

Rafael Nadal went from Australia to Acapulco after a short break, where he raced to his third straight title of the year at the Mexican Open. It was another dominant performance from the World No. 3, who won his 30th career ATP title without dropping a set.

The 35-year-old had to defeat three players ranked within the top 40 this time around, outclassing Tommy Paul (quarterfinals), Daniil Medvedev (semifinals) and Cameron Norrie (final).

In the process, the former World No. 1 extended his run in the 2022 season to 15-0, his best ever start to the year. It also marked his 11th consecutive win in the final, a result that propelled him into the top four again after a six-month break.

Indian Wells: 3rd-best start in ATP history, 20th Masters 1000 final on hardcourts

Rafael Nadal finally met his match in Taylor Fritz at the Indian Wells Masters

Rafael Nadal's mind-blowing run finally came to an end at the Indian Wells Masters against Taylor Fritz in the final, but not before he surpassed Pete Sampras' 17-0 start in 1997.

The Spaniard defeated 4 players ranked within the top 40 -- Sebastian Korda (first round), Daniel Evans (second round), Reilly Opelka (third round) and Carlos Alcaraz (semifinals) to reach 20 wins for the season. The streak marked the third-best start to the year by any player, only behind Novak Djokovic's 2011 (41-0) and 2020 (26-0) seasons.

By reaching the final -- his 20th Masters 1000 final on hardcourts -- the 21-time Grand Slam champion became the first man to reach 20 or more Masters 1000 finals on two different surfaces (33 on clay). He also rose to the World No. 3 spot, leapfrogging Alexander Zverev.

The final verdict on Rafael Nadal's 2022 season so far

There is a reason Rafael Nadal has never managed to make such a start in his career before -- the playing surface. If the year kicked off with a clay swing, there is no doubt the Mallorcan would begin every season the same way.

Which makes it all the more impressive that, at the age of 35, the World No. 3 has put together a series of wins that came so close to matching Novak Djokovic. During this time, the former World No. 1 defeated three top-10 players, winning seven of the nine tie-breakers and all five deciding sets he contested.

If Djokovic's 41-0 and 26-0 starts deserve 10/10 and 9.5/10 respectively, then it stands to reason that Nadal's run deserves a 9/10. But considering the foot injury, his age, the odds being stacked against him, the manner of comebacks and everything else, it is an easy 10/10.