Many still believe that I was the only one Nadal lost to at Roland Garros: Soderling
If the Grand Slam were held later this year, Rafael Nadal is still the clear favorite to win the French Open, according to two-time Grand Slam finalist Robin Soderling.
Mumbai: He was only one victory away from winning a Grand Slam singles championship for two consecutive years. He reached a career high of World No. 4 in the ATP rankings thanks to his incredible success throughout those two seasons.
However, there is only one way that Robin Soderling will ever be remembered by tennis fans worldwide: as the first person to defeat Rafael Nadal in the French Open!
By virtue of having won 31 straight matches at Roland Garros, the renowned Spaniard had established a legendary aura on the red soil. However, in a 2009 fourth round match, the underdog Soderling famously overcame the four-time reigning champion 6-2, 6-7(2), 6-4, 7-6(2).
Naturally, being a part of tennis history is fantastic. Even now, I still get approached by strangers or people I know on the street, and I talk about this match at least twice or three times a week, which is pleasant, naturally,” Soderling says over the phone with TOI from Stockholm. “Everyone remembers where they were sitting when they saw the match, when they heard the news.”
Before being joined by the current men’s World No. 1 Rafael Nadal, the Swede had the distinction of being the only player to have defeated Nadal at the French Open for six years.
In the 2015 tournament quarterfinals, Nadal’s 39-match winning streak was ended by Novak Djokovic. However, Soderling’s victory is so notable that he frequently needs to clarify to others that he is no longer the only one who can talk about it. It’s absurd how many tennis fans still believe that Rafael Nadal has only dropped one match. Frequently, I have to respond, “Well, he lost to Djokovic too.” “I’m not the only one, but it’s still unbelievable,” he remarks.
A few years following the upset, Rafael Nadal disclosed in his autobiography that he was struggling with knee problems ahead of the 2009 French Open, which ultimately led to his withdrawal from the Wimbledon championship defense. Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, a French player, added mystery to Rafael Nadal’s medical condition just last week when he said the Majorcan’s downfall against Soderling was caused by a sore throat. Has the 35-year-old Swede ever been troubled by such talk?”I wouldn’t say that, no. Naturally, I find out about it. I even heard Tsonga’s remarks. Nonetheless, I believe there are always reasons to lose a match.
“People will always be talking about it because it’s such a significant match, or because Rafa losing was such a big shock. Tsonga said something, but I had no idea why. Undoubtedly, I conceded a few times in matches over my career, but I always believed that once I stepped onto the court, my goal was to win. Therefore, it doesn’t really worry me,” Soderling, who had to retire early in 2015 after contracting mononucleosis for an extended period of time, explains.
“When I played, one of my advantages was that I was totally concentrated on my own game. And in particular, I recall that this match was excellent from my perspective.I was completely focused. I believe that a lot of tennis players can identify with that moment when they’re truly in the zone. You see only the ball and the court. That was one of those days when you can’t hear the throng.”If I had begun to consider things like, “Well, is he hurt, is he not playing well, is he doing something wrong?,” it would have been much harder for me to defeat him.”
Their historic rendezvous at the Court Philippe Chatrier was by no means their only unforgettable encounter. They engaged in a tense three-day third-round match at Wimbledon two years prior, with Nadal ultimately emerging victorious in five sets. Witnesses would undoubtedly recall Soderling getting under Nadal’s skin at the beginning of the fifth set, when the Spaniard was getting ready to serve, by imitating his peculiar habit of tugging at his shorts.
The Swede admits he was turned off by Nadal’s propensity to take his time between points, but he doesn’t look back on the incident with pride. Looking back, I wonder if it was wise to perform what I did on Wimbledon’s Court One in front of so many spectators. I probably wouldn’t do it now. I’ve become somewhat more mature.I had to wait for him a long, long time when I did it. Rafa is known for his slowness. That was an extremely tough and lengthy match with a lot of weather delays, and he takes his time in contrast,” Soderling remembers.
Even after the incident, which was followed by a chilly handshake at the conclusion of the match, Soderling says he has always respected Rafael Nadal. “As a tennis player, I have always valued Rafa and his contributions to the game. It is just amazing what those three elite players—Djokovic, Federer, and Nadal—did for the game of tennis.”I always had the utmost regard for each player, but even for the top players, I never tried to show my superiority. That was, in my opinion, really significant.
In a direct critique of the upcoming generation of players, he states, “Today, I have seen many good players, they go on the court to play Novak or Rafa, and you can almost see that they don’t really believe that they can win.”
Even though Soderling himself had faith in himself the day he crushed 61 winners in that incredible upset of Rafael Nadal, he would ultimately lose to Roger Federer in the 2009 French Open final. The Swede would go through the opposite experience the following year at Roland Garros, having ended the Swiss great’s reign in the quarterfinals, only for Nadal to get revenge by winning the final with ease.
It would have been fantastic if I could have defeated them both in a single year. Then, no problem, I might have lost the first round the following year,” Soderling jokes.
Which of the two finals would he play in again if he could travel back in time?
“Whoa! Most likely, I would decide to play Roger once more. I was playing well and felt good physically against Roger the first year, but I wasn’t really emotionally prepared. Roger was the talk of the town and he played Before that one, how many Grand Slam finals are there? I was genuinely inexperienced for my first Grand Slam final at that point.I believe that mentally I was prepared to win a Grand Slam the next year against Rafael Nadal. Although that year had been more physically taxing, I still believed in myself. I was quite exhausted. Once more, I would have needed to perform at the same level as I did the previous year in order to defeat Rafa, but he was simply too good for me to defeat at that point. Thus, to answer your question, “Yes, I would definitely play against Roger if I could play one again.”
At this point in the season, the tennis world normally turns its attention to the French Open. If not for the coronavirus pandemic, Rafael Nadal may have been on the verge of winning an incredible 13th championship. If the clay court major is held in its rescheduled late September/early October slot this year, Soderling—the 19-time Grand Slam champion—will undoubtedly be the player to beat.
“I doubt that much will genuinely change as a result. If I had to choose just one guy, it would be Rafa because, of course, Novak is unbeatable on any surface and Dominic Thiem is playing exceptionally well. You never know, that could also be the case the following year and the year after.
“He may have won 13 or 14 times, but he only won 12 times. That’s really weird, but it’s kind of actually likely,” adds Soderling, the current Davis Cup captain for Sweden.
If things turn out that way, he will be more than delighted to continue telling people about his heroism in 2009—killing giants—when they approach him on Stockholm’s streets!
