Rafael Nadal would arguably be the man solely missed at the Monte Carlo Masters 2024 as on Thursday, he announced on social media that he would have to skip the event again due to failing to regain his fitness in time. The ‘King of Clay’ has won 11 Monte Carlo Masters titles in his career and is unlikely to add another one to his glittering cabinet.
But the next highest number of titles won by a player is a ‘mere’ 3, thus showing how far ahead Rafael Nadal is in this ATP 1000 Masters Tournament and his record is as much unlikely to be broken by anyone in the future. Thomas Muster, Illie Nastasie, and Bjorn Borg won 3 Monte Carlo titles each.
With a win-loss ratio of 73-6 at the Roqueburne-based Masters event, Nadal has created some special moments in this tournament throughout his career, which fans are surely set to miss in 2024. Here are 5 such special matches ft. Rafael Nadal –
Rafael Nadal vs Novak Djokovic, 2009 Monte Carlo Masters final
Novak Djokovic reached the finals of the Monte Carlo Masters for the first time in his career in the 2009 edition. Unfortunately for him, standing against him was the 4-time champion then, Rafael Nadal. Nadal won the match in the end, with scores reflecting 6-3, 2-6, 6-1.
But Djokovic remained the only player in that tournament to take a set out of Nadal in that year’s competition and the scoreline perhaps does not reflect how closely and intensely this match was fought, with some thrilling rallies and points played out between the two archrivals.
Rafael Nadal vs Roger Federer, 2006 Monte Carlo Masters final
The 2006 Monte Carlo Masters was Rafael Nadal’s second consecutive final appearance. As the 2nd-seeded player, Nadal was also the defending champion, whereas Roger Federer reached the finals of the tournament for the first time. Federer, who unluckily remains winless in this tournament’s history, faced Nadal in what turned to be an incredible 4-set final.
The Swiss great had already fended off a scarily good Novak Djokovic in the first round, somehow managing a win. But playing Nadal was a different ball game. The Spaniard eventually won 6-2, 6-7 (2-7), 6-3, 7-6 (7-5) as it was one of the best matches Federer has ever played on clay, despite finishing second best.
Nadal vs Murray, 2011 Monte Carlo Masters semifinals
Rafael Nadal played against British champ Andy Murray in the 2011 Monte Carlo Masters semi-final. The reason this match is remembered, despite not being a final, is because it holds the unique tradition of being part of rare instances where a player took a set from Nadal in Monte Carlo.
Nadal won the first set 6-4, hassle-free. But Murray came back strongly to win the second set 6-2. As usual, Nadal showed his lion-like prowess in the third set, winning it 6-1 and sealing the victory. The Spaniard went on to beat his good friend and compatriot David Ferrer 6-4, 7-5 in the final and sealed his 7th title.
Rafael Nadal vs Grigor Dimitrov, 2013 Monte Carlo Masters Round of 16
The 2013 Monte Carlo Masters was a rare edition of Rafael Nadal not winning the title. Not just that, he lost in the final against long-time rival Novak Djokovic. It may go down as one of the best wins of the Serb. However, it was the fourth-round match between Rafael Nadal and Grigor Dimitrov that made the cut when it comes to the former’s best performances ever in a Monte Carlo Masters match.
It used to be nearly impossible to win even a single set against Nadal in any clay match, but Bulgarian player Grigor Dimitrov became a part of a small list of players to achieve the same. After losing the first set 2-6, he won the 2nd set 6-2. In a thrilling final set, Rafael Nadal once again roared back to win it 6-4.
However, it did give his fans palpitations to even envision Nadal being knocked out of a Monte Carlo Masters tournament before the quarter-final.
Nadal vs Monfils, 2016 Monte Carlo Masters
The 2016 Monte Carlo Masters ended up being Rafael Nadal’s 9th title ever won in the tournament’s history. But he faced a fresh new challenge in the final, in the form of Frenchman Gael Monfils. Gael Monfils was the 13th-seeded player who managed to reach his very first final in this ATP Masters event.
Not just that, Monfils managed to win the second set 7-5 against Nadal, after losing the first one 5-7. In the final set, just like an age-old story, Nadal won it 6-0. He scored a ‘bagel’ against him that too in a ATP Masters 1000 final.
