For the many high points in Rafael Nadal’s illustrious career there were several devastating moments.
In November 2024, following Spain’s exit from the Davis Cup finals, Nadal hung up his tennis racket after more than decades on the ATP Tour.
He established himself as one of the great tennis players of all time, and many regard Nadal as the greatest competitor the sport has seen.
The 38-year-old finished his career with 22 major titles and enjoyed plenty of great matches at the highest level, but there is one Grand Slam match that Rafael Nadal would love to play again if he had the opportunity to do so.
Rafael Nadal would love to play the 2014 Australian Open final again if he had the chance
Nadal usually produced his best tennis at Grand Slam level, especially the French Open, an event he won a record 14 times.
But the Australian Open was a tournament where the Spaniard suffered plenty of heartbreak as well as joy.
Before his second and final title win Down Under in 2022, Nadal lost four successive championship matches. Two came against Novak Djokovic, while Federer outlasted him in 2017.
But the 2014 Australian Open final loss to Stan Wawrinka was a painful one, as he suffered a back injury during the match.
He was unable to run and move as he would like for most of the match, and though continued to battle, Wawrinka claimed a four-set victory to win the first of his three Grand Slam titles.
During a video posted to his Tik Tok account, Nadal named this match as the one he would like to play again, this time at full health.
The former World number one said: “I believe that if I could play a game again, maybe it would be the 2014 Australian final, to see if I don’t get hurt.”
What was Rafael Nadal’s run to the 2014 Australian Open final?
Nadal entered the 2024 Australian Open as the World number one following an excellent 2013 season.
He made his way through the first four matches against Bernard Tomic, Thanasi Kokkinakis, Gael Monfils and Kei Nishikori without dropping a set.
Nadal dropped the first set of his quarter-final against Grigor Dimitrov, before storming back to win 3-6, 7-6, 7-6, 6-2.
Nadal then defeated great rival Roger Federer in straight sets, before facing Wawrinka in the final, where he was the favourite.
It was reported that Nadal suffered an injury during the pre-match warmup, and though he took to the court for the final, it flared up which left him compromised, and Wawrinka went on to become champion.
