Rafael Nadal’s career has been nothing short of spectacular, and he has influenced many tennis players along the road, including young Alex Michelsen and Joao Fonseca.
Nadal won his first ATP Tour-level match at the age of 15 in 2002, and three years later, he had one of his most successful seasons, winning eleven titles.
The Spaniard’s 2005 season was one of the best ever for a teenager, as he won the French Open, Monte Carlo Masters, Italian Open, Canadian Open, Madrid Open, Brasil Open, Mexican Open, Barcelona Open, Swedish Open, Stuttgart Open, and China Open before turning 20.
It was his finest year in terms of single-season titles, followed by the ten he won in 2013.
Of course, Nadal went on to win an astounding 92 ATP singles titles, putting him seventh on the all-time list for most trophies won on the Tour, and he had a 1080-228 (82.6%) win-loss record by the time he retired in 2024.
Now that the dust had cleared from his retirement, Nadal was “back to work” as a guest at the Next Generation ATP Finals in Jeddah, and Michelsen and Fonseca were thrilled to meet the great.
“I have had a poster in my room since he won his eighth French, so it is really cool and I am pleased I have the chance to talk to him,” Michelsen told the website ATPTour.com.
The 20-year-old, who owns three ATP runners-up medals, added: “Winning 11 titles at 19 is simply absurd. I almost got one, but getting 11 is really crazy! That is why he is regarded as one of the greatest tennis players of all time.
Fonseca met Nadal and his mother in 2010 when he was still in diapers, and a photo of the three went viral on social media. Fourteen years later, the trio has reproduced the photograph.
Despite being a Roger Federer devotee, the 18-year-old “also loves Rafa”.
“Rafa is a legend,” the Brazilian explained. “I am a Roger fan, but I also adore Rafael. My coach is a Rafa admirer. My phone’s unlock screen features Rafa with a sentence. It has been a joy meeting him. Eleven titles in a season is simply ridiculous. “I’ll try to do the same.”
