It may be incongruous, and even unfair, to talk about Rafael Nadal in terms of long-term and sporting goals yet to be achieved, but imagination flies very high and it is impossible to stop dreams. Few thought several decades ago that the Spaniard would remain established in the elite at 36 years of age, but nothing suggests an immediate withdrawal. Having apparently resolved the urgent worsening that he suffered in his battered left foot and after having overcome numerous unforeseen events in 2022, what seems clear is that two things remain associated with his figure: the ambition to continue enjoying the competition to the maximum demand and the level of tennis necessary for it. As much as Rafa does not need incentives or historical records to continue, it is impossible to ignore the existence of some challenges that will raise expectations if they come within range and would excite any athlete.
Although it is true that Rafa denies having any type of obsession with adding titles and has made it clear on more than one occasion that he will not alter anything in his calendar for being world number 1being this a secondary objective, it is evident that the possibility of continuing to add to his record Grand Slam and Masters 1000 titles It is an important engine to drive the remainder of his career. In both aspects, he maintains an exciting pulse with Novak Djokovic, as well as in many other statistics that show his triumphant longevity. We cannot forget that Rafa has been one of the few cases in the history of tennis whose early talent and meteoric emergence at a very young age, has been seconded by a long and successful career. This makes him eligible for numerous records, such as being the tennis player with the most weeks among the top three in the world, being only 69 behind Federer. But there are two other things whose significance may be especially noteworthy.
Become the player with the most weeks in the top-10 and qualify for 1,000 weeks in that select club
It sounds like science fiction and it can be daring to even imagine it, but anything is possible. This December 19, 2022, Nadal reached 900 weeks as top-10, breaking in for the first time on April 25, 2005 and not leaving this prestigious group for a single week. The fact of adding all of them consecutively places him in a practically unattainable sphere, but if we analyze the overall number of weeks in the top 10, the Spaniard still has ahead of him Roger Federercon 968.
The fastest way to achieve it would be adding one more whole year without leaving the top-10. If with all the injuries he has had he has never gotten out of there, it seems likely that he can achieve it, although everything can be marked by the start of the year, in which he defends the points obtained in 2022 in Melbourne, Acapulco and Indian Wells. In case he doesn’t lose too many points there, he would then have a breather until Roland Garros, but he has a significant margin compared to eleventh. On December 4, he could reach 950 weeks as a top-10, while to match Federer, he would have to reach the top-10 with that condition. January 29, 2024, that is, with another Australian Open in between. The utopia of 1,000 weeks as a top-10, something that nobody has ever achieved and it seems difficult to imagine that anyone would achieve it, would take place, at the earliest, on November 18, 2024.
Participate in the Paris 2024 Olympic Games
A revamped Philippe Chatrier, clay court, anthem of Spain under the Parisian sky, an audience dedicated to their idol… Can you imagine anything more poetic and emotional than Nadal winning an Olympic gold medal in his own home, on the track that has given him seen make history over and over again? There are more and more who think that Rafa will squeeze all his options to attend this appointment in full condition. He has never been able to play an Olympic Games on clay and seeing himself in Paris looking for a new medal could be the icing on the cake of an impeccable career. Nadal has already expressed his desire to return to play in the Davis Cup, at least one more time, and this could be an open door to think that the Olympic dream may be in his plans, if the injuries respect him and his mind continues to be unsaturated .
