Why Rafael Nadal is Conquerer of all Courts and More than the King of Clay

Courtside Coffee Podcast

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Why Rafael Nadal is Conquerer of all Courts and More than the King of Clay

Rafa's record on clay bolsters his case for GOAT. Yet many critics use his clay-court dominance against him. Those critics are wrong.

Merlisa Lawrence Corbett

Oct 11, 2024

Transcript

Yesterday, Rafael Nadal announced he will retire at the end of the 2024 season. His last professional match will be at the Davis Cup Finals, which will be held in Spain in November.

Rafa is often labeled as the "King of Clay," and sure, with 14 French Open titles to his name, he's undeniably the greatest clay-court player of all time.

But let me ask you this: should his dominance on clay somehow count against him when discussing his place among the greatest players in the sport? I think not.

Listen to the latest episode of Courtside Coffee Podcast to hear my take on why Nadal is more than King of Clay. He’s conquered all surfaces.

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Courtside Coffee Podcast

The Courtside Coffee Podcast kicks off conversations about tennis news and views. The podcast host, Merlisa Lawrence Corbet, is an award-winning journalist and author whose work has appeared in USA Today, The Guardian, Bleacher Report, Sports Illustrated, and Essence.

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