Rafa Nadal, X-ray of an 'alien'

Rafa Nadal beat Stefanos Tsitsipas in the final of the Conde de Godó Trophy in one of the most exciting matches that are remembered in the Barcelona tournament. His victory gave him the first title of the season and further rounding off some numbers that account for the incredible career of the best Spanish tennis player in history and one of the best athletes in the world. He reached the final in Barcelona, the territory in which he He had been unsurpassable in the previous eleven decisive games for the title, but for the first time Rafa Nadal renounced the role of favorite. The Balearic had very little filming and the way in which some meetings had been developed sowed certain doubts facing Stefanos Tsitsipas, the tennis player who has added the most points in 2021 and who arrived with the wake of the Monte Carlo champion. The outcome, you already know: Rafael Nadal conquered his first Godó in 2005, when he was about 19 years old. On Sunday, on his way to 35, he claimed his 12th title in Barcelona, a victory he celebrated as if it were the first time he had hugged a glass. He did not think that at this point he would continue fighting on the circuit, even less did he imagine that he would continue winning titles. A prodigious work and mentality make Rafa Nadal one of the greats in the history of tennis, with his 20 Grand Slams and some numbers to frame. Here are some: Unbeaten in 25 finals for Godó and Roland Garros Stefanos Tsitsipas threatened to snatch the title from him at the trophy ceremony and earlier, lifting two match balls in the second set and enjoying one in the third. But it was Nadal who imposed his law. The Spaniard is 100% effective in the Barcelona finals (12 out of 12), a record surpassed on a much bigger stage: Roland Garros, with his 13 out of 13.Naughty 😏 @steftsitsipas 🇬🇷 apart from being a tennis genius he never loses his sense of humor. What an honor to have enjoyed him in this #bcnopenbs 👏🏼👏🏼 # ATP #atptour pic.twitter.com/ozshwbZqmB- Barcelona Open Banc Sabadell (@bcnopenbs) April 25, 2021 To find another tennis player with a 100% effectiveness you have to look at Novak Djokovic (9/9 in Australia and 6/6 in Beijing). Pete Sampras 7/7 at Wimbledon or Borg and Connors 6/6 at Roland Garros and Birmingham, respectively. All of them with admirable feats, but far from Nadal’s record. 18 consecutive years taking some ‘bite’ In 2004, Rafa Nadal conquered his first professional title in Sopot. Since then, the Spaniard has not failed to raise at least one professional title year after year for the next 18 years. He is the tennis player with the best winning streak in this regard, followed by Novak Djokovic (16 years, from 2006 to 2021) and Roger Federer, who left his private record in 15 consecutive years winning a title (2001-2015). «I don’t hate lose, what happens is that I like to win. And above all, what I like is to compete, to strive to achieve the objectives. If they are not achieved later, I will be able to go home in peace for having given everything, “said Rafa Nadal after his victory in Barcelona. A few words that explain that he has been winning titles for 18 years -and 61 on clay-. 16 years without leaving the top 10 On April 25, 2005, Rafa Nadal entered the top 10 thanks to his first victory in the Conde de Godó Trophy. With his victory yesterday, when he was just 16 years old, he regained second place in the ranking, overtaking Daniil Medvedev who had taken his place a few weeks ago. No one in the history of tennis has gone so long – 813 consecutive weeks – without breaking out of the top ten in the ATP rankings. A fact that is also explained by that desire to compete and to excel.Sixteen years ago today, Rafael Nadal cracked the Top 10 of the FedEx ATP Rankings after winning the Barcelona title. 813 weeks later, he still hasn’t left! #InfosysStats pic.twitter.com/GOY9isDLdE – ATP Tour (@atptour) April 25, 2021 With his conquest of the Conde de Godó Trophy, Rafa Nadal added his victory number 452 on clay. The Spaniard has more games with victory on clay than Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic combined, with 451 between them. Incredible: Record of titles on clay in the OpenRafa Era Nadal has already 61 titles on clay, a record in tennis. Behind him are Vilas, with his 49 titles, and Muster, with 40. Among the 61 titles on clay, are the 13 Roland Garros of the Balearic Islands. There are only some numbers – not all – that account for the great career of one of the best athletes in the world. This victory at Godó, in a special tournament for him, and the way it was given, gives him extra confidence for his next matches. «This victory will help me face what is coming. I still have things to improve, ”Nadal confessed. And what is coming is Madrid, Rome, Roland Garros, Wimbledon … and the Tokyo Olympics. See this post on Instagram A post shared by Rafa Nadal (@rafaelnadal)