Australian Open 2022 Final: How has Rafael Nadal fared at previous editions?

Tennis superstar Rafael Nadal is one win away at the Australian Open 2022 from creating tennis history as he is gunning for a 21st Grand Slam title. He is currently tied with Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic on 20 Majors but a win against US Open champion Daniil Medvedev on Sunday in the final of the Australian Open will put him clear of the other two. Nadal has not been as ruthless in the first Grand Slam of the year as compared to the French Open as he only has one title Down Under.

The 20-time Grand Slam winner has made it to a total of five Australian Open finals and the 2022 final will be his sixth appearance. Of those five times, he has only managed to win it once, which was his first appearance in the finals back in 2009. He came up against Federer and did incredibly well to hold off the Swiss. The then 22-year-old won 7-5, 3-6, 7-6(3), 3-6, 6-2 in a game that lasted five hours and 14 minutes.

The beginning of misfortune at the Aus Open

However, after 2009, Nadal could never replicate those heroics again in the finals. In 2012, Nadal came up against Novak Djokovic in the final but ended up losing 5-7, 6- 4, 6-2, 6-7(5), 7-5 in a game that went the distance and lasted five hours and 53 minutes. In 2014, Swiss tennis star Stan Wawrinka was in top form and came up against an injured Nadal in the final. The Spaniard had been dealing with a back injury and it was a tough ask for him. Wawrinka ended up winning that final 6-3, 6-2, 3-6, 6-3.

Three years after that, Nadal was back in the Australian Open final and this time it was against a familiar foe in the form of Federer. Nadal had come into the that much as the outright favourite and given that he had defeated the Swiss Maestro previously in the finals it seemed he could have edged him. However, Federer stood his ground and gave nothing away as he made sure to remind the world that he was still there contesting for titles. Nadal was no match for Federer and ended up losing 6-4, 3-6, 6-1, 3-6, 6-3. In 2019, Nadal again came up against Djokovic but the Serbian made very short work of him and won in straight sets 6-3, 6-2, 6-3.

Nadal vs Medvedev Australian Open Final

Rafael Nadal now comes into his sixth Australian Open final but not as the outright favourite. He has been dealing with injuries and illnesses like a COVID infection over the past year and a half but he persevered and that has now led him to the final of a Grand Slam. It is no straightforward final as he comes up against the second seed of the tournament and the current US Open champion Daniil Medvedev who is in the form of his life. 

The final will be played on Sunday, January 30 and will begin at 2:00 PM IST at the Rod Laver Arena in Melbourne. Both the players will definitely give it their all to win the first Grand Slam of the year. And they both will have their own reasons to prove why they feel they deserve it.

Image: AP