US Open 2010: A Debate Re-Opened

The reluctant, almost apologetic murmurs have turned into a loud, unstoppable chorus. With every diligent improvement that Rafael Nadal makes in his game, with every significant win that he notches up, with every step that he takes towards cementing his place in the pantheon of tennis’s greats, there is one line of thinking that is rapidly gaining steam in the tennis world. But to preface things, let’s do a quick recount of Nadal’s accomplishments that are being spoken and printed and set in stone all over the world right now. With his victory over Novak Djokovic in the US Open final Nadal has become only the 7^th player in history to have won all the 4 Major titles. He’s the youngest player in the Open era to have achieved the career Grand Slam. He’s won an Olympic singles gold medal. He’s led his country to as many as 4 Davis Cup titles. He has only ever lost one match in his career at the French Open. He is the first player since Bjorn Borg to have won the French Open and Wimbledon back-to-back on more than occasion. He has won more Masters’ tournaments than any other player in history. He has a significant advantage in his head-to-head record against the most successful Grand Slam champion of all time. He is the best player to have ever played the sport.

Wait, what? Is that last bit really being said about Nadal right now? Ok, I may have overshot things a little, but I’ve got news for you, folks – if the recent trend of Nadal crushing any and every opposition that stands in his way is any indication, it won’t be long before the GOAT (that’s ‘Greatest Of All Time’ for the uninitiated) debate is reopened. All those who thought that this particular dispute was done and dusted with after Roger Federer’s victory at Roland Garros last year need to wake up and smell the coffee. Nadal is chipping away at all of Federer’s records at a pace even faster than the ridiculously swift speed at which Federer himself launched his assault on the record books barely 5 years ago. The way in which Nadal has, one step at a time, ticked off every minor chink in his armor to propel himself towards all the milestones that were supposed to be out of reach of his limited, one-dimensional playing style is nothing short of astounding. At just 24 years of age, Nadal has pretty much won everything that there is to win in the game of tennis, with the possible exception of the Year-end championships (and I wouldn’t bet against that hurdle being eclipsed this year too). And he’s done all this while maintaining a 14-7 head-to-head record against the putative GOAT, a stat that is scarcely believable when put in perspective.

Of course, it is entirely possible that the future may not shape up in quite the way that Nadal’s recent successes seem to foretell. Nadal’s body is perhaps the single biggest factor that can act as a stumbling block in his epic journey. He has chronic tendonitis in his knees and was forced to retire from a match as recently as the Australian Open. He spent nearly two months on the sidelines last year owing to a wide variety of ailments, being forced to withdraw from Wimbledon and entering the US Open only half-fit. But with all the sagacity of a man destined to flirt with immortality, Nadal has taken steps to conquer even this obstacle. He has learnt to shorten the points and avoid ‘grinding’ out his wins. His serve, as has been widely documented, gives him tons of free points now. He has taken a stab at managing his playing schedule more efficiently (does anyone really doubt now that Nadal’s early losses at Toronto and Cincinnati were nothing more than part of a meticulous plan to pace himself for the big prize?). Like a true champion that doesn’t leave anything to chance, Nadal has, in a manner that almost reeks of OCD, gone forth and erased every single circumstance, even the ones that seemed more under nature’s control than his own, that could possibly hinder his evolution as a tennis player. There is nothing that he and his team are not prepared to do to help him reach the pinnacle, a quality that is in sharp contrast to the famed stubbornness that has characterized many a great player (and Federer is among the most notable of that breed). It may be clichéd to say this, but for Nadal tennis really is more than a sport; it is a war that has to be won at absolutely any cost.

Nadal’s tally of 9 Majors is still well short of Federer’s 16, but if he stays healthy it would take a brave man who would bet against Nadal getting to that number eventually. And if he does get there, I’m guessing there won’t be anything left to debate as far as this pesky little GOAT business is concerned. The way I see it, only two scenarios can stop this inevitability from coming to pass – 1. Federer discovers some magic botox-like chemical that can miraculously halt the effects of age on a tennis player’s game, and 2. Nadal gets permanently saddled with his own nemesis, a young player coming through the ranks who’s even more skilled, more determined, more hard-working and more competitive than Nadal. It is a mark of Nadal’s greatness that I actually think scenario 1 is more likely than scenario 2.