16 Major injuries: A look back at the Grand Slams Rafael Nadal had to sit out
Nadal has won a whopping 22 Grand Slam titles but the fact that he also had to miss 16 Majors through injuries is a testament to the Spaniard's perseverance
The wait for Rafael Nadal's return to Grand Slam tennis got longer with the Spanish great announcing that a torn hip muscle that will keep him out of the Australian Open this year. Nadal, who has won in Melbourne twice in 2009 and 2022, had injured his hip last January which required him to go under the knife in June and thus kept him out of the sport for most of the rest of the year. However, Nadal said that this is not the same part of the hip that had caused the long-term absence and he still remains on track to his main goal this year, playing and reclaiming the French Open.
The 37-year-old is in the twilight of a prolific career that has seen him being recognised among three of the greatest players of all time in the history of men's tennis, alongwith his longtime rivals Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic. There was significant uncertainty around whether he would be able to return to the sport after his injury last year until he announced his comeback in December and while Nadal was positive about the severity of his current knock, the uncertainty continues to linger. However, Nadal has had a long history of injuries. In fact, if he has won 22 Grand Slam titles, he has also missed missed a Major 16 times in his career due to injury. Here we take a look at them.
1. 2003 French Open (elbow injury)
This would have been Nadal's first French Open in his senior career. However, the 16-year-old injured his elbow in a fall during training and had to sit out the clay court Grand Slam, which he would go on to win a record 14 times.
2. 2004 French Open (Scafoid stress fracture)
This was the year in which Nadal played Federer for the first time in his career, beating the then-world no.1 in the third round of the Miami Open. However, he suffered a stress fracture in his left ankle during his round of 16 victory over Richard Gasquet which kept him out for the next three months.
3. 2004 Wimbledon (Scafoid stress fracture)
The three-month absence meant that Nadal had to sit out the Wimbledon that year as well. Federer succesfully defended his title that year.
4. 2006 Australian Open (Left foot injury)
Nadal had won his first Grand Slam title in 2005, winning the Roland Garros and was second only to Federer in terms of number of matches won throughout the year. He had to miss the first Grand Slam of the next season though, having injured his foot.
5. 2009 Wimbledon (Tendinitis of the knee)
Nadal had snatched the Wimbledon title away from Federer in a match that is now part of tennis folklore in 2008. However, he couldn't defend it the next year as he was suffering recurring tendinitis on both knees.
6. 2012 US Open (Tendinitis of the knee)
Nadal had withdrawn from the London Olympics in July 2012 and had to subsequently withdraw from the rest of the 2012 season itself with the tendinitis issue resurfacing. He ended the year ranked No. 4 in the world, the first time in eight years that he has not been ranked 1st or 2nd at the end of the year.
7. 2013 Australian Open (Stomach virus)
Two weeks before the Australian Open, Nadal officially withdrew from the tournament citing a stomach virus. Nadal subsequently dropped out of the top four in the ATP rankings for the first time since 2005.
8. 2014 US Open (right wrist injury)
Nadal had equalled Pete Sampras' total of 14 Grand Slam wins by claiming his fifth consecutive, and ninth overall, French Open title in 2014. However, he was unsuccessful in his bid to reclaim Wimbledon and subsequently withdrew from the American swing due to a wrist injury.
9. 2016 Wimbledon (left wrist injury)
Nadal had to withdraw from the 2016 French Open in the third round due to a wrist injury. This marked the first time in his career that he had not won the clay court Grand Slam for two consecutive years since making his senior debut at Roland Garros. He subsequently had to withdraw from the Wimbledon as well.
10. 2020 US Open (Covid-19 bubble concerns)
Nadal was the defending champion but chose not to participate in the 2020 US Open due to both safety concerns related to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic and the short amount of time between the US Open and the rescheduled European clay season.
11. 2021 Wimbledon (left foot)
Nadal had suffered just the third loss of his career that year at the French Open to Novak Djokovic. He then withdrew from both the Wimbledon and the Tokyo Olympics due to scheduling reasons. It was later revealed that he was suffering from a recurring left foot injury.
12. 2021 US Open (left foot)
Nadal did return that year for the American swing but, just 10 days out from the US Open, announced that he is ending his 2021 season due to the trouble to his left foot.
2023 - Roland Garros, Wimbledon, US Open (left hip)
Nadal was the defending champion at the 2023 Australian Open but lost in straight sets to to Mackenzie McDonald in the second round. He was severely affected by a hip injury in the match and in late February, he announced his withdrawal from the Indian Wells and Miami Masters. He subsequently withdrew from the clay court season as well and that meant that Nadal dropped out of the top 100 of the ATP rankings for the first since 2003. He subsequently withdrew from the Wimbledon and US Open as well.