Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic are the only players to have played 70 matches in a single Masters 1000. As in many other segments, the three legends have raised the bar that will be difficult to break in the future.
Roger pulled it off at Indian Wells and Miami, taking advantage of a bigger draw and deep runs at those two events to get into the standings. Rafa has added his name to the list with notable performances in Monte Carlo, Rome, Madrid and Indian Wells.
Both legends have 79 matches in their most productive Masters 1000 tournaments, with Federer hitting that figure in Indian Wells and Nadal in Monte Carlo.
Nadal could have become the only player to make 80 appearances in a single Masters 1000 tournament this spring in Monte Carlo.
Yet he was unable to take part in one of his favorite stages on the circuit due to a broken rib during the Indian Wells campaign.
Hopefully, Rafa will snatch the record from Roger when they meet in the round of 16 in the Principality next April.
Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer share the Masters 1000 record.
Nadal made his Monte Carlo debut in 2003 at the age of 16 and picked up two qualifying victories to launch his incredible Masters 1000 run.
Two years later, the Spaniard won his first title at 18. He remained undefeated until the 2013 final, thus achieving 46 consecutive victories in the Principality and a place in the record book!
Rafa bounced back between 2016 and 2018 with three more Monte Carlo titles before losing ground in the following years.
Monte-Carlo closed in 2020 due to the pandemic and Nadal did not play the 80th match of this event last year.
The Spaniard picked up two important wins over Federico Delbonis and Grigor Dimitrov to advance to the quarterfinals and come close to his record. But Andrey Rublev proved too strong and beat them 6-2, 4-6, 6-2 in two hours and 32 minutes.
It was Nadal’s first loss in Monte Carlo since 2014. Rublev squandered the lead in the second set but rallied stronger in the third to cross the line in style.
Rublev broke Nadal’s serve seven times, leading the way in the first and third sets and earning one of his most notable victories. As in 2019 against Fabio Fognini, Nadal was miles away from the best of him, committing too many double faults and failing to keep up with Rublev’s pace to get out of goal.
Rafa had to miss the Monte Carlo Masters this year and his 80th match in this tournament will take place in April.
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