Australian Open 2017: Five reasons why Rafael Nadal will defeat Roger Federer in the finals

#5 Records beckon Nadal

Nadal with his Australian Open title in 2009

Nadal has won 14 Grand Slams in his career which includes one Australian Open title, nine French Open titles, two Wimbledon titles and two US Open titles. He is tied with Pete Sampras for the second spot on the list of most Grand Slam winners. Winning the Australian Open will mean he will surpass Sampras and will be just two short of Federer’s record of 17 Grand Slam titles.

Also, winning the Australian Open on Sunday will mean that Nadal will be the only player of his generation to have won all the Grand Slams at least twice. In 2010, he won the US Open final against Novak Djokovic and thus achieved the Career Grand Slam. He became only the seventh player in the Open era to achieve a Career Grand Slam.

Only Rod Laver and Roy Emerson have won the Career Slam twice, and now Nadal has the opportunity to equal their feat. This is probably the best chance the Spaniard will ever get to win his second Australian Open and it will definitely serve as added motivation when he steps onto the court on Sunday.