Rafael Nadal's worst-ever defeat in his Tennis career which left him devastated for days

Rafael Nadal one of the greatest tennis players in history has announced his retirement from Tennis after a successful 23 years, winning 22 grand slams and a record 14 French Open titles. He is called the ‘King of Clay’ as he showed complete dominance in the French Open games winning 14 out of 19 appearances. 

However, there is one game that wrecked Rafael Nadal and the most in his career as he was left Devastated for days. Nadal’s uncle and Former coach Toni Nadal has named the biggest loss Nadal felt during his career. The 2012 Australian Open championship match between Nadal and Djokovic where the Serbian won the match 7-5, 4-6, 7-6 (5), 5-7 after a 5 hour 53 minutes hard court battle. It is the longest Grand Slam finals match ever and is still considered the greatest tennis match game ever played. 

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'Finals loss Left him Devastated' - Tony Nadal

The Spaniard dominated the game initially before the Serbian made a comeback and won the game. Rafael Nadal played 30 Grand Slam finals match and it was the only time he lost after winning the first set. Toni Nadal said, “The worst defeat was the Australian final against Djokovic in 2012. I have not seen that match again because I left devastated. Toughness is not an end, it is a means. I was tough because Rafael had very high expectations and he was capable of withstanding that hardness.”

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He coached Nadal from childhood until 2017. They together won 16 out of his 22 grand slams. He is now the director of Rafa Nadal Academy in Mallorca. Rafael Nadal will play his last Tennis Tournament for Spain competing in the Davis Cup finals in November. Now only Novak Djokovic is left in the Big 4 as Federer, Murray, and Nadal have all retired from the tennis game. 

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