How well do you know Rafael Nadal and his Grand Slam career, particularly at Roland Garros? Try this AP quiz ahead of the French Open, which begins Sunday in Paris:
1st Round: First Round on Clay
Nadal’s first-round match at the French Open will be his 114th career tournament-opener on red clay at the Grand Slam or ATP Tour level. He is 112-1 so far in his initial matches at clay events. Who is the only player to beat him?
a.) Roger Federer
b.) Juan Carlos Ferrero
c.) Stan Wawrinka
d.) Novak Djokovic
2nd Round: Grand Slam Start
At which tournament did Nadal make his Grand Slam debut, winning two matches?
a.) Australian Open
b.) French Open
c.) Wimbledon
d.) U.S. Open
3rd Round: 2016 Withdrawal
Who was Nadal supposed to play in the third round of the 2016 French Open before withdrawing?
a.) Facundo Bagnis
b.) Gaston Gaudio
c.) Nicolas Almagro
d.) Marcel Granollers
4th Round: French Open Record
What is Nadal’s career record at the French Open entering the 2024 tournament?
a.) 114-1
b.) 113-2
c.) 112-3
d.) 111-4
Quarterfinals: Longest Winning Streak
How many matches in a row did Nadal win during his longest unbeaten run at Roland Garros?
a.) 59
b.) 49
c.) 39
d.) 29
Semifinals: Clay-Court Titles
Nadal enters the 2024 French Open with 92 total titles in his career. How many of those came on clay?
a.) 63
b.) 60
c.) 57
d.) 53
Final: Most French Open Titles
Nadal’s 14 French Open singles titles are the most for anyone in tennis history at any of the four Grand Slam tournaments. Who won the second most since non-French players were allowed to enter the event in the 1920s?
a.) Bjorn Borg
b.) Chris Evert
c.) Steffi Graf
d.) Mats Wilander
Answers
1st Round. b. Ferrero, the 2003 French Open champion and former No. 1-ranked player who currently coaches Carlos Alcaraz, defeated Nadal 7-5, 6-1 at the Italian Open in 2008.
2nd Round. c. His first Grand Slam main-draw appearance came in 2003 at Wimbledon, where he made it to the third round. He also played in the U.S. Open later that year, then made his Australian Open debut the following season, before playing in the French Open for the first time in 2005.
3rd Round. d. Nadal wore a blue brace on his injured left wrist when he announced at a news conference in Paris that he would not be able to continue in the tournament. He was supposed to face Granollers, a Spaniard who would go on to lose in the fourth round to Dominic Thiem.
4th Round. c. He has a .974 winning percentage in the French Open, including 14-0 in finals. His only losses came against Robin Soderling (2009) and Novak Djokovic (2015 and 2021).
Quarterfinals. c. He won 39 matches in a row, including five consecutive titles, from the beginning of the 2010 French Open until a quarterfinal loss to Djokovic in 2015.
Semifinals. a. His 63 clay titles include 12 in Barcelona, 11 in Monte Carlo and 10 in Rome.
Final. b. Evert won seven titles at the French Open in the 1970s and 1980s. Steffi Graf and Bjorn Borg each won six.
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Howard Fendrich has been the AP’s tennis writer since 2002. Find his stories here: https://apnews.com/author/howard-fendrich
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AP tennis: https://apnews.com/hub/tennis