2009 Rafael Nadal tennis season
Rafael Nadal at 2009 Sony Ericsson Open, Miami, Florida, United States
Full nameRafael "Rafa" Nadal Parera
Country Spain
Calendar prize money$5,466,515 (Singles $5,414,604, Doubles $51,911)[1][2]
Singles
Season record66–14 (82.5%)[3]
Calendar titles5
Grand Slam & significant results
Australian OpenW
French Open4R
WimbledonDNS
US OpenSF
Doubles
Season record7–5 (58.3%)
Calendar titles1
Davis Cup
Davis CupW
Injuries
Injuriesknee injury
← 2008
2010 →

The 2009 Rafael Nadal tennis season officially began on January 5 with the start of the 2009 ATP World Tour.

Year's summary

Qatar Open

Nadal's first official ATP tour event for the year was the 250 series Qatar Open in Doha. After his first-round match with Fabrice Santoro, Nadal was awarded the 2008 ATP World Tour Champion trophy.[4] Nadal eventually lost in the quarterfinals to Gaël Monfils. Nadal also entered and won the tournament's doubles event with partner Marc López, defeating the world No. 1 doubles team of Daniel Nestor and Nenad Zimonjić in the final. As noted by statistician Greg Sharko, this was the first time since 1990 the world No. 1 singles player had played the world No. 1 doubles player in a final.[5]

Australian Open

At the 2009 Australian Open, Nadal won his first five matches without dropping a set, before defeating compatriot Fernando Verdasco in the semifinals in the second longest match in Australian Open history at 5 hours and 14 minutes.[6] This win set up a championship match with Roger Federer, their first meeting ever in a hard-court Grand Slam tournament and their nineteenth meeting overall. Nadal defeated Federer in five sets to earn his first hard-court Grand Slam singles title,[7] making him the first Spaniard to win the Australian Open and the fourth male tennis player—after Jimmy Connors, Mats Wilander, and Andre Agassi—to win Grand Slam singles titles on three different surfaces. This win also made Nadal the first male tennis player to hold three Grand Slam singles titles on three different surfaces at the same time.[8]

ABN AMRO World Tennis Tournament

At the ABN AMRO World Tennis Tournament in Rotterdam, Nadal lost in the final to second-seeded Andy Murray in three sets. During the final, Nadal called a trainer to attend to a tendon problem with his right knee, which notably affected his play in the final set.[9] Although this knee problem was not associated with Nadal's right knee tendonitis, it was serious enough to cause him to withdraw from the Barclays Dubai Tennis Championships a week later.[10]

Davis Cup

In March, Nadal helped Spain defeat Serbia in a Davis Cup World Group first-round tie on clay in Benidorm, Spain. Nadal defeated Janko Tipsarević and Novak Djokovic. The win over world No. 3 Djokovic was Nadal's twelfth consecutive Davis Cup singles match win and boosted his career win–loss record against Djokovic to 11–4, including 6–0 on clay.[11][12]

Indian Wells

At the 2009 Indian Wells Masters, Nadal won his thirteenth Masters 1000 series tournament. In the fourth round, Nadal saved five match points, before defeating David Nalbandian for the first time.[13] Nadal defeated Juan Martín del Potro in the quarterfinals and Andy Roddick in the semifinals, before defeating Murray in the final.

Miami

The next ATP tour event was the 2009 Miami Masters. Nadal advanced to the quarterfinals, where he again faced Argentinian del Potro, this time losing the match. This was the first time del Potro had defeated Nadal in five career matches.[14]

Monte Carlo

Nadal began his European clay court season at the 2009 Monte Carlo Masters, where he won a record fifth consecutive singles title there.[15] He defeated Novak Djokovic in the final for his fifth consecutive win, a record in the open era. Nadal is the first male player to win the same ATP Master series event for five consecutive years.

Barcelona

Nadal then competed in the ATP 500 event in Barcelona. He advanced to his fifth consecutive Barcelona final, where he faced David Ferrer. Nadal went on to beat Ferrer to record five consecutive Barcelona victories.[16]

Rome

At the Rome Masters, Nadal reached the final, where he defeated Novak Djokovic to improve his overall record to 13–4 and clay record to 8–0 against the Serb.[17] He became the first player to win four Rome titles.

After winning two clay-court Masters, he participated in the Madrid Open. He lost to Roger Federer in the final. This was the first time that Nadal had lost to Federer since the semifinals of the 2007 Tennis Masters Cup.

On 19 May, the ATP World Tour announced that Nadal was the first player out of eight to qualify for the 2009 ATP World Tour Finals, to be played at the O2 Arena in London.[18]

French Open

By beating Lleyton Hewitt in the third round of 2009 French Open, Nadal (2005–09 French Open) set a record of 31 consecutive wins at Roland Garros, beating the previous record of 28 by Björn Borg (1978–81 French Open). Nadal had won 32 consecutive sets at Roland Garros (since winning the last 2 sets at the 2007 French Open final against Federer), the second-longest winning streak in the tournament's history behind Björn Borg's record of 41 consecutive sets. This run came to an end on 31 May 2009, when Nadal lost to eventual runner-up, Robin Söderling in the 4th round in a massive upset. This was Nadal's first loss at the French Open.

Injury

After his surprise defeat at Roland Garros, Nadal withdrew from the AEGON Championships. It was confirmed that Nadal was suffering from tendinitis in both of his knees.[19] On 19 June, Nadal withdrew from the 2009 Wimbledon Championship, citing his recurring knee injury.[20] He was the first champion not to defend the title since Goran Ivanišević in 2001.[20] Roger Federer went on to win the title, and Nadal consequently dropped back to world No. 2 on 6 July 2009. Nadal later announced his withdrawal from the Davis Cup.

Return

On 4 August, Nadal's uncle, Toni Nadal, confirmed that Nadal would return to play at the Rogers Cup in Montreal.[21] There, in his first tournament since Roland Garros, Nadal lost in the quarterfinals to Juan Martín del Potro.[22] With this loss, he relinquished the No. 2 spot to Andy Murray on 17 August 2009, ranking outside the top two for the first time since 25 July 2005.

US Open

In the quarterfinals of the US Open he defeated Fernando González in a rain-delayed encounter.[23] However, like his previous US Open campaign, he fell in the semifinals, this time losing to eventual champion Juan Martín del Potro.[24] Despite the loss, he regained the No. 2 ranking after Andy Murray's early exit.[25]

World Tour Finals

At the World Tour Finals, Nadal lost all three of his matches against Robin Söderling, Nikolay Davydenko, and Novak Djokovic respectively without winning a set.

Davis Cup final

In December, Nadal participated in the second Davis Cup final of his career. He defeated Tomáš Berdych in his first singles rubber to give the Spanish Davis Cup Team their first point in the tie. After the Spanish Davis Cup team had secured its fourth Davis Cup victory, Nadal defeated Jan Hájek in the first Davis Cup dead rubber of his career. The win gave Nadal his 14th consecutive singles victory at Davis Cup (his 13th on clay).

Year end ranking

Nadal finished the year as No. 2 for the fourth time in five years.

All matches

Singles

Tournament Match Round Opponent (seed or key) Rank Result Score
Qatar ExxonMobil Open
Doha, Qatar
ATP Tour 250
Hard, outdoor
5 – 11 January 2009
1 / 4131R France Fabrice Santoro51Win6–0, 6–1
2 / 4142R Slovakia Karol Beck (Q)144Win6–1, 6–2
3 / 415QF France Gaël Monfils (5/WC)13Loss4–6, 4–6
Australian Open
Melbourne, Australia
Grand Slam tournament
Hard, outdoor
19 January – 1 February 2009
4 / 4161R Belgium Christophe Rochus75Win6–0, 6–2, 6–2
5 / 4172R Croatia Roko Karanušić92Win6–2, 6–3, 6–2
6 / 4183R Germany Tommy Haas79Win6–4, 6–2, 6–2
7 / 4194R Chile Fernando González (13)14Win6–3, 6–2, 6–4
8 / 420QF France Gilles Simon (6)8Win6–2, 7–5, 7–5
9 / 421SF Spain Fernando Verdasco (14)15Win6–7(4–7), 6–4, 7–6(7–2), 6–7(1–7), 6–4
10 / 422W Switzerland Roger Federer (2)2Win (1)7–5, 3–6, 7–6(7–3), 3–6, 6–2
ABN AMRO World Tennis Tournament
Rotterdam, Netherlands
ATP Tour 500
Hard, indoor
9 – 15 February 2009
11 / 4231R Italy Simone Bolelli37Win4–6, 6–2, 7–5
12 / 4242R Bulgaria Grigor Dimitrov (WC)478Win7–5, 3–6, 6–2
13 / 425QF France Jo-Wilfried Tsonga (7)13Win6–4, 6–7(5–7), 6–4
14 / 426SF France Gaël Monfils (5)12Win6–4, 6–4
15 / 427F United Kingdom Andy Murray (2)4Loss (1)3–6, 6–4, 0–6
Davis Cup, World Group 1st Round
Benidorm, Spain
Davis Cup
Clay, outdoor
6 – 8 March 2009
16 / 4281R
R2		 Serbia Janko Tipsarević47Win6–1, 6–0, 6–2
17 / 4291R
R4		 Serbia Novak Djokovic3Win6–4, 6–4, 6–1
BNP Paribas Open
Indian Wells, United States
ATP Tour Masters 1000
Hard, outdoor
9 – 22 March 2009
–1R Bye
18 / 4302R Germany Michael Berrer (Q)112Win6–2, 6–1
19 / 4313R Russia Dmitry Tursunov (26)27Win6–3, 6–3
20 / 4324R Argentina David Nalbandian (14)14Win3–6, 7–6(7–5), 6–0
21 / 433QF Argentina Juan Martín del Potro (6)6Win6–2, 6–4
22 / 434SF United States Andy Roddick (7)7Win6–4, 7–6(7–4)
23 / 435W United Kingdom Andy Murray (4)4Win (2)6–1, 6–2
Sony Ericsson Open
Miami, United States
ATP Tour Masters 1000
Hard, outdoor
23 March – 5 April 2009
–1R Bye
24 / 4362R Russia Teymuraz Gabashvili72Win6–2, 6–2
25 / 4373R Portugal Frederico Gil (Q)74Win7–5, 6–3
26 / 4384R Switzerland Stanislas Wawrinka (16)17Win7–6(7–2), 7–6(7–4)
27 / 439QF Argentina Juan Martín del Potro (6)7Loss4–6, 6–3, 6–7(3–7)
Monte Carlo Rolex Masters
Monte Carlo, Monaco
ATP Tour Masters 1000
Clay, outdoor
13 – 19 April 2009
–1R Bye
28 / 4402R Argentina Juan Ignacio Chela (PR)167Win6–2, 6–3
29 / 4413R Ecuador Nicolás Lapentti (Q)98Win6–3, 6–0
30 / 442QF Croatia Ivan Ljubičić (WC)66Win6–3, 6–3
31 / 443SF United Kingdom Andy Murray (4)4Win6–2, 7–6(7–4)
32 / 444W Serbia Novak Djokovic (3)3Win (3)6–3, 2–6, 6–1
Barcelona Open Banco Sabadell
Barcelona, Spain
ATP Tour 500
Clay, outdoor
20 – 26 April 2009
–1R Bye
33 / 4452R Portugal Frederico Gil (Q)75Win6–2, 6–2
34 / 4463R Belgium Christophe Rochus61Win6–2, 6–0
–QF Argentina David Nalbandian (7)15WalkoverN/A
35 / 447SF Russia Nikolay Davydenko (3)8Win6–3, 6–2
36 / 448W Spain David Ferrer (4)13Win (4)6–2, 7–5
Internazionali BNL d'Italia
Rome, Italy
ATP Tour Masters 1000
Clay, outdoor
27 April – 3 May 2009
–1R Bye
37 / 4492R Italy Andreas Seppi37Win6–2, 6–3
38 / 4503R Sweden Robin Söderling27Win6–1, 6–0
39 / 451QF Spain Fernando Verdasco (6)8Win6–3, 6–3
40 / 452SF Chile Fernando González (12)13Win6–3, 6–3
41 / 453W Serbia Novak Djokovic (3)3Win (5)7–6(7–2), 6–2
Mutua Madrileña Madrid Open
Madrid, Spain
ATP Tour Masters 1000
Clay, outdoor
11 – 17 May 2009
–1R Bye
42 / 4542R Austria Jürgen Melzer27Win6–3, 6–1
–3R Germany Philipp Kohlschreiber35WalkoverN/A
43 / 455QF Spain Fernando Verdasco (7)8Win6–4, 7–5
44 / 456SF Serbia Novak Djokovic (3)4Win3–6, 7–6(7–5), 7–6(11–9)
45 / 457F Switzerland Roger Federer (2)2Loss (2)4–6, 4–6
French Open
Paris, France
Grand Slam tournament
Clay, outdoor
25 May – 7 June 2009
46 / 4581R Brazil Marcos Daniel (Q)97Win7–5, 6–4, 6–3
47 / 4592R Russia Teymuraz Gabashvili72Win6–1, 6–4, 6–2
48 / 4603R Australia Lleyton Hewitt48Win6–1, 6–3, 6–1
49 / 4614R Sweden Robin Söderling (23)25Loss2–6, 7–6(7–2), 4–6, 6–7(2–7)
Rogers Cup
Montreal, Canada
ATP Tour Masters 1000
Hard, outdoor
10 – 16 August 2009
–1R Bye
50 / 4622R Spain David Ferrer19Win4–3, retired
51 / 4633R Germany Philipp Petzschner45Win6–3, 6–2
52 / 464QF Argentina Juan Martín del Potro (6)6Loss6–7(5–7), 1–6
W&S Financial Group Masters
Cincinnati, United States
ATP Tour Masters 1000
Hard, outdoor
17 – 23 August 2009
–1R Bye
53 / 4652R Italy Andreas Seppi45Win7–6(7–4), 7–6(7–3)
54 / 4663R France Paul-Henri Mathieu31Win7–5, 6–2
55 / 467QF Czech Republic Tomáš Berdych18Win6–4, 7–5
56 / 468SF Serbia Novak Djokovic (4)4Loss1–6, 4–6
US Open
New York City, United States
Grand Slam tournament
Hard, outdoor
31 August – 13 September 2009
57 / 4691R France Richard Gasquet46Win6–2, 6–2, 6–3
58 / 4702R Germany Nicolas Kiefer129Win6–0, 3–6, 6–3, 6–4
59 / 4713R Spain Nicolás Almagro (32)33Win7–5, 6–4, 6–4
60 / 4724R France Gaël Monfils (13)13Win6–7(3–7), 6–3, 6–1, 6–3
61 / 473QF Chile Fernando González (11)11Win7–6(7–4), 7–6(7–2), 6–0
62 / 474SF Argentina Juan Martín del Potro (6)6Loss2–6, 2–6, 2–6
China Open
Beijing, China
ATP Tour 500
Hard, outdoor
5 – 11 October 2009
63 / 4751R Cyprus Marcos Baghdatis (WC)90Win6–4, 3–6, 6–4
64 / 4762R United States James Blake24Win7–5, 6–7(4–7), 6–3
65 / 477QF Russia Marat Safin (WC)59Win6–3, 6–1
66 / 478SF Croatia Marin Čilić (8/WC)15Loss1–6, 3–6
Shanghai ATP Masters 1000
Shanghai, China
ATP Tour Masters 1000
Hard, outdoor
12 – 18 October 2009
–1R Bye
67 / 4792R United States James Blake26Win6–2, 6–7(4–7), 6–4
68 / 4803R Spain Tommy Robredo (14)15Win6–1, 6–4
69 / 481QF Croatia Ivan Ljubičić37Win3–6, 6–3, retired
70 / 482SF Spain Feliciano López41Win6–1, 3–0, retired
71 / 483F Russia Nikolay Davydenko (6)8Loss (3)6–7(3–7), 3–6
BNP Paribas Masters
Paris, France
ATP Tour Masters 1000
Hard, indoor
9 – 15 November 2009
–1R Bye
72 / 4842R Spain Nicolás Almagro27Win3–6, 7–6(7–2), 7–5
73 / 4853R Spain Tommy Robredo (14)15Win6–3, 3–6, 7–5
74 / 486QF France Jo-Wilfried Tsonga (8)9Win7–5, 7–5
75 / 487SF Serbia Novak Djokovic (3)3Loss2–6, 3–6
Barclays ATP World Tour Finals
London, United Kingdom
ATP Finals
Hard, indoor
22 – 29 November 2009
76 / 488RR Sweden Robin Söderling (8)9Loss4–6, 4–6
77 / 489RR Russia Nikolay Davydenko (6)7Loss1–6, 6–7(4–7)
78 / 490RR Serbia Novak Djokovic (3)3Loss6–7(5–7), 3–6
Davis Cup, World Group Final
Barcelona, Spain
Davis Cup
Clay, indoor
4 – 6 December 2009
79 / 491W
R1		 Czech Republic Tomáš Berdych20Win7–5, 6–0, 6–2
80 / 492W
R4		 Czech Republic Jan Hájek102Win6–3, 6–4

Source (ATP)

Exhibition matches

Tournament Round Opponent Result Score
Capitala World Tennis Championship
Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates
Exhibition tournament
Hard, outdoor
1 – 3 January 2009		 QF Bye
SF Russia Nikolay Davydenko Win 6–2, 6–3
F United Kingdom Andy Murray Loss 4–6, 7–5, 3–6
Masters Guinot-Mary Cohr
Paris, France
Exhibition tournament
Clay, outdoor
20 – 22 May 2009		 W
R4		 France Arnaud Clément Win 6–3, 6–3

Doubles

Tournament Match Round Opponents (seed or key) Ranks Result Score
Qatar ExxonMobil Open
Doha, Qatar
ATP Tour 250
Hard, outdoor
5 – 11 January 2009
Partner: Spain Marc López
1 / 1151R Spain Óscar Hernández / Spain Albert Montañés#136 / #99Win6–3, 6–3
2 / 116QF Germany Christopher Kas / Germany Philipp Kohlschreiber (4)#29 / #79Win6–7(7–9), 6–4, [10–3]
3 / 117SF France Fabrice Santoro / Russia Mikhail Youzhny#75 / #63Win1–6, 7–6(7–2), [11–9]
4 / 118W Canada Daniel Nestor / Serbia Nenad Zimonjić (1)#2 / #1Win (1)4–6, 6–4, [10–8]
ABN AMRO World Tennis Tournament
Rotterdam, Netherlands
ATP Tour 500
Hard, indoor
9 – 15 February 2009
Partner: Spain Ignacio Coll-Riudavets
5 / 1191R France Arnaud Clément / France Michaël Llodra#83 / #39Loss3–6, 4–6
BNP Paribas Open
Indian Wells, United States
ATP Tour Masters 1000
Hard, outdoor
9 – 22 March 2009
Partner: Spain Marc López
6 / 1201R Czech Republic František Čermák / Slovakia Michal Mertiňák#26 / #31Win7–6(7–2), 4–6, [10–7]
7 / 1212R United States Bob Bryan / United States Mike Bryan (1)#1 / #1Loss4–6, 3–6
Sony Ericsson Open
Miami, United States
ATP Tour Masters 1000
Hard, outdoor
23 March – 5 April 2009
Partner: Spain Marc López
8 / 1221R Sweden Johan Brunström / Netherlands Antilles Jean-Julien Rojer (Alt)#61 / #69Win6–2, 7–6(7–5)
9 / 1232R Brazil Bruno Soares / Zimbabwe Kevin Ullyett (6)#20 / #6Loss3–6, 4–6
Rogers Cup
Montreal, Canada
ATP Tour Masters 1000
Hard, outdoor
10 – 16 August 2009
Partner: Spain Francisco Roig
10 / 1241R Serbia Novak Djokovic / Serbia Dušan Vemić#140 / #49Win7–5, 6–4
11 / 1252R Belarus Max Mirnyi / Israel Andy Ram (7)#21 / #12Loss6–4, 3–6, [8–10]
BNP Paribas Masters
Paris, France
ATP Tour Masters 1000
Hard, indoor
9 – 15 November 2009
Partner: Argentina Juan Mónaco
12 / 1261R Germany Christopher Kas / Germany Philipp Kohlschreiber#39 / #88Loss6–4, 5–7, [13–15]

Source (ATP)

See also

References

  1. ↑ Player activity 2009. Singles
  2. ↑ Player activity 2009. Doubles
  3. ↑ "R. Nadal Tennis Tournaments, Results and Schedules 2009 - Tennis Statistics Wettpoint". tennis.wettpoint.com.
  4. ↑ "Nadal, Murray, Federer Off the Mark In 2009". ATP World Tour. 6 January 2009. Retrieved 2012-06-15.
  5. ↑ Sharko, Greg (16 January 2009). "DEUCE Australian Open 2009 Shark Bites". ATP World Tour. Retrieved 2012-06-15.
  6. ↑ Ubha, Ravi (30 January 2009). "One for the record books". ESPN. Retrieved 2012-06-20.
  7. ↑ "Rafael Nadal Completed Matches, 2009 Australian Open". Tennis Australia. 30 January 2009. Archived from the original on February 2, 2009. Retrieved 30 January 2009.
  8. ↑ "Record-breaking Rafa Notches Up Another First". Tennishead. 4 February 2009. Archived from the original on April 9, 2009. Retrieved 4 February 2009.
  9. ↑ Cambers, Simon (16 February 2009). "Murray takes title to complete hat-trick over crocked Nadal". The Guardian. UK. Retrieved 16 February 2009.
  10. ↑ "Injured Nadal pulls out of Dubai". BBC Sport. 19 February 2009. Retrieved 19 February 2009.
  11. ↑ "Nadal beats Djokovic to help Spain clinch win". NBC Sports. Associated Press. 8 March 2009. Archived from the original on 11 October 2012. Retrieved 13 June 2010.
  12. ↑ Rogers, Iain (8 March 2009). "Nadal beats Djokovic to put Spain through". Reuters. Retrieved 13 June 2010.
  13. ↑ Oberjuerge, Paul (19 March 2009). "Nadal Shows Why He's No. 1, and Safina Shows Why She Isn't". The New York Times. Retrieved 9 July 2010.
  14. ↑ "Players | ATP Tour | Tennis". ATP Tour.
  15. ↑ "Nadal seals fifth Monte Carlo win". BBC Sport. 19 April 2009. Retrieved 20 April 2009.
  16. ↑ "Nadal storms to Barcelona victory". BBC Sport. 26 April 2009. Retrieved 26 April 2009.
  17. ↑ "Nadal regains Rome Masters title". BBC Sport. 3 May 2009. Retrieved 6 May 2009.
  18. ↑ Herman, Martyn (19 May 2009). "Nadal seals spot for ATP season finale in London". Reuters. Retrieved 13 June 2010.
  19. ↑ "Rafael Nadal has problems in both knees, will try to rehab in time for Wimbledon – ESPN". ESPN. 9 June 2009. Retrieved 6 June 2010.
  20. 1 2 "Champion Nadal out of Wimbledon". BBC News. 19 June 2009. Retrieved 22 May 2010.
  21. ↑ "Rafael Nadal returns to tennis at Montreal Masters". GOTOTENNIS. 4 August 2009. Archived from the original on 6 August 2009. Retrieved 5 August 2009.
  22. ↑ "Nadal Suffers Montreal Setback". Sporting Life (British newspaper). 15 August 2009. Archived from the original on 2012-01-18. Retrieved 15 August 2009.
  23. ↑ "Nadal finishes Gonzalez with ease". BBC Sport. 12 September 2009. Retrieved 13 September 2009.
  24. ↑ "Del Potro thrashes Nadal in semis". BBC Sport. 13 September 2009. Retrieved 13 September 2009.
  25. ↑ "Tennis: Nadal knees hold up as he regains No. 2 spot with victory". The Edinburgh Paper. 9 September 2009. Archived from the original on 15 June 2011. Retrieved 13 September 2009.
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