Mind over matter -- Nadal fends of injuries to claim historic 21

Rafael Nadal is the greatest male tennis player ever. Now that sentence has a nice ring to it.

But if we chart the course of the Spaniard's injury-ravaged tennis career, bagging 21 Grand Slam titles is purely about mind over matter. 

Nadal's 20-year-old career on the Tour has been nothing short of dramatic and more than anything, his sheer will to overcome injuries and surgeries, year after year to come back stronger, is stuff of legends.

At 35 years of age, seven months short of turning 36, he was even considering retiring after a foot problem that has troubled him throughout his carrier resurfaced, forcing him to miss a chunk of the 2021 season including Wimbledon, the Olympics and the US Open.

His tryst with injuries began in as early as 2004 when he missed his first French Open after suffering a stress fracture in his left ankle. 

A year later, a career-threatening foot injury he picked up at the Madrid Masters forced him to miss the 2005 year-ending Tennis Masters Cup in Shanghai and the 2006 Australian Open. But he came back to defend his French Open crown defeating Roger Federer. 

In his autobiography he even mentioned that he contemplated quitting tennis and taking up golf because of the injury. But he was not one to give up although his body continued to take a beating from the rigours of the game. 

In 2008, he pulled out of the Tennis Master Cup citing tendinitis of the knee.

The tendinitis forced him to pull out of the Queen’s Club grasscourt tournament in London in 2009 and was the first man not to defend his Wimbledon title since Croatia’s Goran Ivanisevic skipped the grasscourt grand slam in 2002.

In 2009, an abdominal pull saw him lose to Argentina's Juan Martin del Potro at the US Open.

The knee injury resurfaces at the 2010 Australian Open and is forced to withdraw mid-way through the quarter-final against Andy Murray.

A hamstring injury in 2011 Australian Open quarter-final severely affects his movement, losing to compatriot David Ferer.

A knee injury once again saw him pull out from the Miami Masters semi-final against Murray in March 2012 and the persistent injury kept him from defending his singles title at the 2012 London Olympics.

He returned after nearly 7 months to win the 2013 French Open defeating Ferrer in the final.

Nadal missed the 2014 US Open with a wrist injury and a year and a half later, he ruled himself out of Wimbledon 2016 because of a torn tendon in his wrist. 

But not one to give up, Nadal recovered only to come back and win his 10th French Open title in 2017 and follow that up with titles at Roland Garros three years in succession. Pain-free, Nadal also bagged two US Open titles in 2017 and 2019. 

After winning the 2020 French Open crown to tie with Roger Federer for 20 Grand Slams, he didn't win any major title in 2021, crashing out to Djokovic in the French Open semis all this while nursing a back injury and the recurring foot injury. He pulled out of Wimbledon, Tokyo Olympics and the US Open to complete his recovery from a recurring foot injury that cut short his 2021 season. 

He announced ahead of the US Open that the injury to his left foot would rule him out for the rest of the year.

"I want to recover from this injury in good condition," the 35-year-old Spaniard had said.

"I don't know when I will play again, I work a lot every day, I follow a specific plan with a marked roadmap...

"There are always things that I can't control one hundred per cent, but inside my head I'm clear on what my objectives are and I trust that things will follow a positive course."

In September 2021 he had posted a photo of himself on crutches. 

Almost five months after he posted that photograph of himself on crutches after a medical procedure on the foot, the 35-year-old Spanish great scripted history to become the only male tennis player to win 21 Grand Slams.

"It's just amazing now being gone one month and a half ago I didn't know if I will be able to be back on the tour playing tennis again."

"And today I'm here in front of all of you having this trophy with me."