Rafael Nadal completed one of the epic comebacks of his storied career in the 2022 Australian Open men's singles final, coming back from two sets down to defeat reigning US Open champion Daniil Medvedev, 2-6, 6-7, 6-4, 6-4, 7-5.
History looked like it would have to wait for a record-breaking 21st men's Grand Slam singles title. But after five hours, 24 minutes, Nadal broke clear of Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic to stand alone with the game's most coveted mark.
After dropping the first two sets, Nadal fell behind Love-40 at 2-3 in the third. But he saved those three break points—and 16 of 22 for the match—to hang around. As the contest wore on, the 35-year-old grew stronger as he began to wear down Medevedev, 10 years his junior.
There was one final twist late in the match—which finished past 1 a.m. in Melbourne—as Nadal was broken in his attempt to serve out the match a 5-4 in the fifth. But he was able to break back immediately, and made no mistake on his second opportunity by serving out the match to love.
In honor of Nadal's historic achievement, USOpen.org brings you 21 numbers for the Spaniard's 21 Grand Slam titles.
1: Grand Slam final losses to men other than Federer and Djokovic. Stan Wawrinka got the better of Nadal in the 2014 Australian Open final.
2: By winning his second Australian Open title, Nadal has now won each major twice. He has 13 Roland Garros titles, four at the US Open, two at Wimbledon and two in Melbourne. Only Djokovic has previously accomplished that feat in the Open era.
3: Three years—the longest gap between major wins for Nadal. The relative drought came from 2014-17, and was bookended by two Paris titles.
4: Nadal's title tally at the US Open (2010, '13, '17, '19).
4-3: Nadal's record in five-set Grand Slam finals, broken down as follows: 2007 Wimbeldon (l. to Federer), 2008 Wimbledon (def. Federer), 2009 AO (def. Federer), 2012 AO (l. to Djokovic), 2017 AO (l. to Federer), 2019 US Open (def. Medvedev), 2022 AO (def. Medvedev).
5: Number of years in which Nadal won two or more Slams. He won two in 2008, '13, '17 and '19, and three in 2010.
5 months: Time Nadal spent out of competition as he rehabbed a lingering foot injury that caused him to miss the 2021 US Open and the 2021 ATP Finals.
6: Hard-court major titles for Nadal. Initially pegged as a clay-court specialist, Nadal won his first hard-court title at the 2009 Australian Open.
7: Grand Slam titles won in his 30s. Nadal turned 31 during Roland Garros 2017, the first Slam he won in his 30s.
10: Nadal's longest run of consecutive years with a major singles title, from 2005-14. That 10-year run is an Open era record.
10: Sets Nadal played against Medvedev in their two major final meetings. Nadal won sets one, two and five at the 2019 US Open, and sets three, four and five on Sunday.
13: Nadal's record haul at Roland Garros. The sheer dominance of Nadal in Paris cannot be overstated. He won four straight titles from 2005-08, five from 2010-14, and another four from 2017-20.
16-14: The score by which Nadal won the opening-set tiebreak against Adrian Mannarino in the fourth round of the 2022 Australian Open. After 28 minutes, 40 seconds, Nadal won the breaker on his seventh set point, after saving four against him. He would then cruise to a 7-6, 6-2, 6-2 victory, with the last two sets combined taking less time than the first.
16 1/2 years: Time from Grand Slam No. 1 to Grand Slam No. 21. Nadal won his first major title at Roland Garros in 2005, just two days after his 19th birthday. All these years later, he stands alone with 21 in '22.
21-8: Nadal's record in Grand Slam finals. He won his first two (Roland Garros 2005-06) and his last four (2019 Roland Garros, 2019 US Open, 2020 Roland Garros, 2022 Australian Open).
22 hours, 28 minutes: Time spent on court at the 2022 Australian Open. That's an average of three hours, 13 minutes per match. Nadal played 27 sets in his seven victories, winning 21 and losing six.
23.3%: Nadal's 21 Grand Slams make up nearly one-quarter of his 90 career ATP-level titles.
35: Nadal joins Federer and Ken Rosewall as the only men to win the Australian Open at age 35 or older. Nadal is the third-oldest man to win any major title in the Open Era.
53: Number of games in Nadal's title match victory over Medvedev on Sunday.
298-41: Nadal's record over 63 career major appearances. (His withdrawal at Roland Garros in 2016 is not counted as a loss.)
1 year, 3 1/2 months: Time between Nadal's 20th and 21st major title. He won Grand Slam No. 20 on Oct. 11, 2020, in the fall edition of Roland Garros. On Jan. 30, 2022, he made history in Melbourne. Due to injury, he only played in two other Slams in that time: the Australian Open and Roland Garros in 2021.
