2004 Rafael Nadal tennis season

Main article: Rafael Nadal

2004 Rafael Nadal tennis season

Full name	Rafael Nadal Parera
Country	Spain
Calendar prize money	$447,758 (Singles $347,212, Doubles $100,546)
Singles
Season record	30–18 (62.5%)
Calendar titles	1
Year-end ranking	No. 51
Ranking change from previous year	2
Grand Slam results
Australian Open	R32
French Open	A
Wimbledon	A
US Open	R64
Other tournaments
Tour Finals	DNQ
Olympic Games	R32 (Doubles)
Doubles
Season record	18–13 (58.06%)
Calendar titles	1
Year-end ranking	No. 46
Ranking change from previous year	139
Davis Cup
Davis Cup	W
Injuries
Injuries	Ankle Stress Fracture, 3 months

The 2004 Rafael Nadal tennis season started in January, carrying over his ATP men's singles ranking of 49 from the end of 2003. Nadal won his inaugural ATP singles title at the Idea Prokom Open in Sopot, Poland on clay in August. He finished the year ranked 51, 2 places worse than the prior year, due to an injury that saw him miss nearly 3 months of play and 2 majors. 2004 also saw Nadal's first appearance at the Australian Open, and the first iteration of the Federer–Nadal rivalry at Miami.

Hard and Carpet Courts, Doubles Title, Beginning of Federer Rivalry

Nadal entered his first tournament of the year at Chennai, India on hard courts, losing his first match in the Round of 32 to Thierry Ascione. He then entered Auckland, also on hard courts, where he reached the final, to be defeated by Dominik Hrbaty. At the Australian Open, making his first appearance, Nadal reached the Round of 32, where he was defeated by Lleyton Hewitt in straight sets. Nadal then represented Spain in the 2004 Davis Cup in 2 matches in World Group Round 1 against the Czech Republic, defeating Radek Stepanek and losing to Jiri Novak. In February, Nadal entered Milan, on carpet, losing in the Round of 16 to Mario Ancic. In March, in Dubai, back on hard courts, Nadal reached the quarterfinals, losing to Mikhail Youzhny. At Indian Wells, the first Masters series tournament of the year, Nadal lost in the Round of 32 to Agustin Calleri. Following this, at Miami, Nadal lost in the Round of 16 to Fernando Gonzalez. However, in the round prior, Nadal defeated the then-new world number 1 Roger Federer, 6-3 6-3. This victory over Federer kicked off a rivalry that would endure more than a decade.

Nadal concluded the hard/carpet season to start the year with a 14-8 record (63.6% win rate) and no titles. However, partnering with fellow countryman Tommy Robredo, he won the doubles tournament at Chennai, defeating Israeli pair Jonathan Erlich and Andy Ram in the final, 7-6 4-6 6-3. This was Nadal's second doubles title and first on hard courts.

Spring Clay Season, Ankle Injury

Nadal then entered the Spring clay court season in April. His first tournament was at Estoril, where he lost in the quarterfinal to Irakli Labadze. He suffered a stress fracture in his ankle during his Round of 16 victory over Richard Gasquet, causing him to miss the trio of clay Masters series tournaments, the French Open, and Wimbledon. In July, Nadal entered two more clay tournaments. At Bastad, he lost in the quarterfinal to recent French Open champion Gaston Gaudio. The following week, Nadal lost at Stuttgart, again in the quarterfinal, this time to fellow Spaniard David Ferrer. Nadal finished the clay season with a record of 6-3 (66.7% win rate) and zero titles. His year-to-date record was 20-11 (64.5% win rate) with zero titles.

Summer Hard Courts, First Clay Title

Nadal's summer Masters hard court season was short-lived. He lost his first matches in the Round of 64 at both the Canada Masters and Cincinnati Masters, to Lleyton Hewitt and Juan Ignacio Chela, respectively. He then decided to enter a clay tournament between these tournaments and the hard-court US Open. At the Idea Prokom Open in Sopot, Poland, Nadal won 4 matches before defeating 105th-ranked Argentine Jose Acasuso in the final 6-3 6-4 to win his first ever ATP men's singles title. The win raised Nadal's ranking from 71 to 49, and Nadal became the youngest ATP champion since Lleyton Hewitt in 1999. Nadal then returned to hard courts at the US Open, where he won one match before losing to defending champion and 2nd-ranked Andy Roddick in the Round of 64. At this point in the season, Nadal's record was 26-14 (65% win rate) with one title.

Finishing the season, Davis Cup Success

Nadal went back to clay matches after the US Open, again representing Spain in the Davis Cup, this time in one match against France in the World Group Semifinals. Nadal defeated Arnaud Clement on clay in 3 straight sets. He then entered Palermo on clay, where he lost in the Round of 16 to Olivier Mutis. In October, Nadal entered Lyon on carpet courts, losing to Julien Benneteau in his first match. Two weeks later, Nadal entered his final Masters series tournament of the year at Madrid, losing on the hard courts in the Round of 32 to Vincent Spadea. Nadal finished the month with a first-round loss to Rainer Schuettler on carpet courts at Basel. He then closed his season with a Davis Cup World Group Final win on clay courts over Andy Roddick, helping Spain defeat the United States 3-2 to win the tournament.

Year-end Ranking and Statistics

Nadal finished his season with a 30-18 record (62.5% win rate), one singles title, one doubles title, and a singles ranking of 51. This was a decline from his 2003 year-end ranking of 49, but Nadal missed 3 months of the season, including the four biggest tournaments on his favorite surface (Monte Carlo, Rome, Hamburg, and the French Open) as well as Wimbledon. He had improved his ranking to a career-best 34 immediately prior to his injury. On clay, his record was 14-4 (77.8% win rate). This would be his last season without a major win until 2015, and his last season without a Masters series win until, again, 2015. This was also, as of July 2018, the last year where he would finish the season ranked outside the Top 10.

References

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📰 Article(s) of the same category(ies)

• 2001 Rafael Nadal tennis season
• 2003 Rafael Nadal tennis season
• 2002 Rafael Nadal tennis season

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