5 least games dropped by any Grand Slam male Singles champion

It takes a good tennis player to drop no set throughout any Grand Slam tournament but it takes an exceptional tennis player to win a tournament but drop few games in the process. Over the years in Grand Slam tennis history, there have been a lot of instances that a player has dropped 70-80 or sometimes even 100 games while winning a Grand Slam.

However, there have also been instances where a player managed to win a Grand Slam without dropping too many games. Here are the least number of games dropped by any Grand Slam champion.

#5. Guillermo Vilas- 39, 1977 US Open

This is the only instance on this list where a player dropped a set while winning the tournament. It is also the only tournament on this list which is not the French Open.

Argentine Guillermo Vilas won his second Grand Slam title at the 1977 US Open, having previously won the French Open earlier that year.

Seeded fourth, Vilas won the tournament by beating second seed Jimmy Connors in the final in four sets.

Vilas dropped only one set while winning the tournament and dropped only 41 games in the process. Connors was the only person to have won a set against Vilas the entire tournament as he won the opening set of the final 6-3.

The Argentine ace came back well by winning the following three sets 6-3, 7-6, 6-0. Vilas’ 15 dropped games during the final would be the most he dropped throughout the tournament as he had won most of his matches dropping five games or less.

That however, is mostly because at that time, Grand Slam matches would be contested on a best of three set basis until the fourth round.

#4. Rafael Nadal- 40, 2008 French Open

Nadal won his fourth successive French Open title without dropping a single set

The King of Clay claimed his fourth consecutive French Open title in remarkable fashion by defeating Roger Federer in the final in straight sets, thus winning the tournament without dropping a single set.

In doing this, Rafa became the first man to win the French Open without dropping a set since Bjorn Borg in 1980.

Not only did Nadal not drop a single set while winning the tournament but he also dropped only 41 games in the process.

The only player to have won more games against Nadal than any other player was his semi-final opponent Novak Djokovic who won 12 games against the Spaniard in a 4-6, 2-6, 6-7 defeat.

Barring his semi-final and first round match, Nadal won all other games dropping 5 or less games. In the final, Roger Federer could only win 4 games as his fiercest rival defeated him 6-1, 6-3, 6-0.

#3. Bjorn Borg- 38, 1980 French Open

Borg won his fifth French Open title dropping only 38 gamesAt his peak, Bjorn Borg was probably the most feared tennis player in the world as his hard hitting and unorthodox backhand was a nightmare for even the likes of Jimmy Connors and John McEnroe. Borg won his 5th French Open title in 1980 by defeating 5th seed Vitalis Gerulaitis in the final in straight sets.

Borg won the tournament without dropping a single set, replicating his 1978 win. Throughout the tournament, Borg lost only 38 games with the most number of games he lost in a single match of the entire tournament - 8, against his first round opponent Alvaro Fillol of Chile.

Gerulaitis, Fillol, and Borg’s opponent in the quarter-finals Corrado Barazzutti are the only players who have won five or more games against Borg throughout the entire tournament.

#2. Rafael Nadal- 35, 2017 French Open

Rafa won his 10th French Open title while dropping only 35 games

Rafael Nadal wrapped off a successful clay-court season this year by winning the French Open, defeating Stan Wawrinka in the final in straight sets.

Nadal won the tournament without dropping a single set, thus winning the French Open without dropping a single set thrice - having done it previously in 2008 and 2010.

Nadal dropped only 35 games en route to his 10th French Open title with Robin Hasse’s 8 games won in the second round making it the most number of games Nadal would go on to lose throughout the entire tournament.

Nadal owned all of his opponents throughout the tournament with even Wawrinka (who had never lost in a Grand Slam final before this game) managing to win only 6 games.

#1. Bjorn Borg- 32, 1978 French Open

Bjorn Borg's 32 games dropped at the 1978 French Open is the least for any male Grand Slam champion

Bjorn Borg outplayed everyone in the 1978 French Open as he won the tournament without dropping a single set and dropped only 32 games throughout the entire tournament.

Borg’s fourth round opponent Roscoe Tanner was technically the actual runner-up of this contest as he won 12 games against the Swede, the most any of Borg’s opponent had won throughout the course of the tournament.

Besides Tanner, the only other player who won more than 5 games against Borg was his quarter-final opponent, 6th seeded Mexican Raul Ramirez who won 6 games against him. Borg won all of his other matches by dropping 5 games or lesser.

Even Guillermo Vilas, the tournament runner-up, could only win 5 games against Borg. Borg’s 32 games dropped at the 1978 French Open is the least for any Grand Slam champion.