Rafa & The Conquistadores
Among the five greatest tennis nations in this series, Spain and Switzerland share something in common: they are completely dominated by a single player, one who is head and shoulders above the rest of the field. These two players will be forever linked, not only as two of the greatest ever to play the game, but because of their evocative (albeit lopsided) rivalry.
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Before getting to Rafa, let’s look at Spanish tennis before the King of Clay. Before the Open Era, only three Spanish players appeared in Slam finals, Pro or Amateur: Manuel Santana, Andres Gimeno, and Juan Gisbert Sr. The first two are well known as top players of the 1960s, but Gisbert Sr is not so well known – he lost to William Bowrey in the 1968 Australian Open final, the last Slam before the Open Era began. Santana won four Amateur Slams in the 1960s and was ranked No. 1 among Amateurs in 1966 when he won Wimbledon, but never entered the professional circuit, so didn’t play the top players in the game.
Andres Gimeno was one of the best players from the 60s that wasn’t Australian. He had a long career, beginning as an amateur in 1956, turning pro in 1961, and playing until 1973. While he never won a Pro Slam, he played in four finals – losing to Rod Laver three times, Ken Rosewall once. He is perhaps best known for winning the 1972 French Open at the ripe age of 34.
Spanish tennis became stronger during the Open Era, but didn’t see its first truly great player until Rafael Nadal emerged from the clay of Manacor, fully formed like some Mediterranean deity. Let’s take a look at the Open Era Slam record:
As you can see, before Nadal seven Slams were won by Spanish players: one each by Gimeno, Manuel Orantes, Albert Costa, Carlos Moya, and Juan Carlos Ferrero, and two by Sergi Bruguera. The weakest era for Spain was the 1980s, after Manuel Orantes retired, but then picked up in the 90s with Bruguera, then later Moya and Ferrero, among others. It is also worth noting that of the seven Spanish Slam winners of the Open Era, only Orantes and Nadal won Slams on a surface other than clay.
Ten Greatest Spanish Players of the Open Era
1. Rafael Nadal
2. Manuel Orantes
3. Juan Carlos Ferrero
4. Carlos Moya
5. Sergi Bruguera
6. David Ferrer
7. Andres Gimeno
8. Alex Corretja
9. Albert Costa
10. Tommy Robredo
Honorable Mentions: Jose Higueras, Emilio Sanchez, Felix Mantilla, Carlos Costa, Albert Berasategui, Francisco Clavet, Feliciano Lopez, Fernando Verdasco, Nicolas Almagro, Albert Portas, Juan Aguilera.
Number one is easy, but after that it gets really dicey. Orantes, Ferrero, Ferrer, Moya, Bruguera, and Gimeno could be ranked in any number of ways. Gimeno would probably be second if we counted his whole career, but his Open Era career wasn’t as impressive as the others. Albert Costa is, along with Thomas Johansson and Gaston Gaudio, a one-Slam wonder who benefited from playing in the weak early years of the 21st century. Alex Corretja is among the better players never to win a Slam – along with later countryman David Ferrer.
Spanish tennis has been strong over the last ten years, although with one player dominating. But David Ferrer, Feliciano Lopez, Tommy Robredo, Fernando Verdasco, and Nicolas Almagro have all had very good careers.
A bit on Rafael Nadal. There is little doubt that he is the most dominant clay court player in the history of the game, and there has been no harder task than beating Rafa at Roland Garros where he holds a 70-2 record. Rafa was the clear World No. 2 for 2005-07 but then stole not only Wimbledon but the No. 1 ranking from Roger Federer in 2008. He has struggled with injury through much of his career, so there’s an element of “what if” to Rafa’s career. Some say that if he had been healthy he’d have surpassed Federer’s Slam count by now, while others say that we cannot separate Rafa’s penchant for injury from his greatness due to his style of play. Either way, his record is what it is: Regardless of what his future accomplishments might be, right now he is one of the greatest players in tennis history.
The Future
Troubled times may be ahead for Spain. Consider the Spanish players current (as of July 6) in the Top 100 with their ages:
7. David Ferrer (33)
10. Rafael Nadal (29)
16. Feliciano Lopez (33)
19. Tommy Robredo (33)
22. Roberto Bautista Agut (27)
32. Guillermo Garcia-Lopez (32)
37. Pablo Andujar (29)
43. Fernando Verdasco (31)
63. Daniel Gimeno-Traver (29)
65. Albert Ramos (27)
67. Pablo Carreno Busta (23)
72. Marcel Granollers (29)
Notice something? Nine of the twelve players are 29 or older. We could chalk this up to the way of things these days, but there’s a disturbing lack of young players on that list. In other words, of those twelve players only Carreno Busta and possibly Bautista Agut and Ramos have room to improve, however none of them are likely to be future elite players.
There is also the question of Rafa’s decline. Clearly he is not the player he was in 2008-13, his peak range. Rafa has a tendency to play well, get injured, then surge back to the top again – a cycle that has repeated itself a few times. But this latest round hasn’t seen a surge (yet), and we’re now almost eight months from his appendicitis surgery. Does Rafa have another surge him? Who knows? Many, including myself, have long speculated that when the end comes for Rafa it will come quickly. But I, for one, am not ready to relegate him to the history books. Not yet. I doubt we’ll see another 2013, but we could see a lesser version.
But other than the players listed above, is there a future for Spanish men’s tennis? Let’s take a look at the youth.
Highest Ranked Player By Age
23: Pablo Carreno Busta (No. 67)
22: Roberto Carballes Baena (No. 169)
21: David Perez Sanz (No. 305)
20: Albert Alcaraz Ivorra (No. 481)
18/19: Jaume Munar (No. 690)
17: Carlos Taberner (No. 970)
So consider that – the highest ranked Spanish teenager is No. 481 in the world. Even the United States has three teenagers ranked higher. History has shown us that great players are usually pretty good while still in their teens – meaning in or near the Top 100 – and there’s no player even close to that. Even if we say that players are starting their peaks more in the 23-25 range rather than 20-22, as in the past, there’s no young Spanish player who looks to be on the trajectory for greatness. Surprise weather patterns happen, but the forecast as of right now is not positive for Spanish men’s tennis – at least not over the next few years. What we are likely going to see is a gradual and then quick diminishing of Spanish tennis as Nadal, Ferrer, Lopez, Verdasco, Robredo, and Almagro all fade away and then retire, with perhaps only Bautista Agut and Carreno Busta carrying the torch as Spanish players in the Top 20-30 range in a few years time. Whether they can carry that torch long enough to pass to the next great Spaniard remains to be seen.
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Cover Photo (Creative Commons License): bourgol / Carine06 / Marianne Bevis / conson