Ascendancy: Rafael Nadal's Career, Phase 1

Some tennis players with extraordinary potential struggle a little in their ascendant years. Roger Federer did, but once he hit his stride history followed. Andy Murray might have a similar trajectory.

At 22 Rafael Nadal seems to be in the last year or two of his ascendancy, with stage two, the "prime years" coming up. What can we say about his recent years in tennis?

Clay court excellence

Even if Nadal never played again he will already be remembered as one of the best clay court players of all time. In 2006 and 2007 he was virtually unbeatable on the surface

In 2008 Nadal was even less beatable on clay. The only player who would stand a chance to take more than one set off him would have been the Nadal of 2007, and I know which of the two Nadals I would have bet on.

It's a pity Bjorn Borg was not born around 22 years ago—we would have witnessed  extraordinary matches.

Most improved player

Few players have ever worked this hard, intelligently, and consistently at reaching 100 percent of their potential, year after year.

Talent is great. But getting close to your full potential requires much more else—and few get as close as this extraordinary young man. Perhaps this is what characterizes Nadal the most.

Nadal exemplifies what it means to truly do your best, in training and in matches. This makes him an inspiration to people no matter their sport or other field.

Grass and Hard Courts

As a result we have seen breathtaking improvements in his game each year.

During the clay season of 2008, Rafa was already adapting his game toward grass. He went on to win in Queens and at Wimbledon.

Then he surprised even those of us expecting great improvements on the hard court. A couple of titles, a gold medal and a grand slam later, it is difficult to see how good he might become on his "worst" surface.

Serving with the non-dominant hand

It is well known that Nadal’s coach, his uncle, made him switch to playing with his non-dominant hand at an early age. Consider how long it then had to take to refine all his skills with his left hand. His serve in particular.

Thus Nadal’s serve took a long time to turn from liability to weapon. Imagine trying to pitch a baseball with your non-dominant hand, and then practicing to get it to world-class level.

He accomplished nearly his entire ascent to No. 1 with few free service points. And it will take more years yet to get his serve near its potential.

Character

If you’re reading this article you need no reminders of Rafa’s exemplary character in every circumstance.

Here’s to a long career to one of our best examples of a life well lived!