Rafael Nadal expects his tennis Grand Slam record to be beaten following Australian Open coronation

Published 02/02/2022 at 19:43 GMT

After battling back from injury to heroically win the Australian Open, Rafael Nadal does not think his current record of 21 Grand Slam victories will be enough for him to be, statistically, the best player of all time for too long. Novak Djokovic and Roger Federer are just one major title behind the Spaniard, with world number one Djokovic looking to return to action in Dubai.

'One of my most emotional matches' – Nadal's victory speech

Rafael Nadal expects his Grand Slam record haul to be eclipsed but is proud to have fought back from injury to claim his 21st title at the Australian Open.

Speaking at the Rafa Nadal Academy, the Spaniard said, “Not long ago, I’d be happy just coming back and playing tennis and now I have 21. My speech doesn’t change and neither does my approach to it”.

After spending so long stuck alongside Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic on 20 titles before his epic five set final victory over Daniil Medvedev in the Melbourne showpiece, Nadal is well aware he now has a large target on his back.

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Speaking about his new challenge, to stay at the front of the pack, Nadal said, “Do I want to be the one with the most Grand Slams? Yes, I do. Am I obsessed or frustrated by the idea of not being the one? Zero. I don’t think 21 will be enough to end being the one with the most Grand Slams”.

With Federer anxiously waiting on when, and even if, he will be able to return from his latest injury setback, Djokovic seems the most threatening party to match and even move ahead of Nadal’s record.

After being deported from the country and missing out on the Australian Open, Djokovic is expected to get himself back on track and return to action at the ATP 500 event in Dubai.

Nadal’s final against Medvedev on Rod Laver Arena will go down in history, after the 35-year-old heroically battled back from two sets down to take home the Norman Brookes Challenge Cup.

Highlights: Nadal wins Australian Open and claims 21st Grand Slam title

With all the talk before the match focused on Nadal’s opportunity to become the greatest men’s player of all time, he’s admitted he felt the pressure.

“I was nervous before the final because I knew that I was playing for something important, but this year everything was upside down. I had three hard months without being able to train properly and then the virus”, he said.

It was the ultimate fairytale return after a foot injury had ended his 2021 season prematurely and led to conversations among his team and family about whether he should retire altogether.

Nadal’s been quick to insist he has not been hung up by the desire to reach the record-breaking territory the 21st Grand Slam has taken him to, saying, “How could I think about it if I hadn’t played for six months? I didn’t think about this.”

So, what was the key to his Melbourne triumph?

“There are several key moments”, he admits.

Several training sessions against the top players that gave me a different perspective

After straight sets wins over Marcos Giron and Yannick Hanfmann in the opening two rounds, Nadal’s been able to pinpoint where he started to believe he could go all the way.

“During the third game against Khachanov, I made an important step forward, that was the first big challenge”, he said.

“I overcame it with good feelings. Then I started to breathe differently and you know that everything is difficult, but my feelings were good”.

Adrian Mannarino, Denis Shapovalov and Matteo Berrettini came and went, to leave just Daniil Medvedev standing in his way of victory, and potential immortality in the sport.

To the engrossed crowd, every shot looked like a world of pain and every step like climbing the steepest of peaks.

But, for Nadal, he had it all under control, obviously.

“Everything clicked and this was the less expected time. I played with self-confidence, with the maximum illusion and joy”.

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