Rafael Nadal wins 1,000th ATP Tour match with Paris Masters victory

Rafael Nadal began his professional career in 2001

Rafael Nadal became the fourth player to record 1,000 ATP Tour wins with victory over fellow Spaniard Feliciano Lopez at the Paris Masters.

American legend Jimmy Connors leads with 1,274, followed by Nadal’s long-time rival Roger Federer (1.242) and Czech great Ivan Lendl (1,068).

The feat comes a month after Nadal won his 20th Grand Slam, matching Federer’s record, with a 13th French Open title.

“To arrive at that number I must have done a lot of things well,” said Nadal.

The Spaniard was presented with a glass trophy with ‘1,000’ emblazoned on it in golden numerals after his landmark victory.

Asked whether he was proud to still be playing at a high level, he said: “Probably yes. I have faced some challenges in my career in terms of injuries.

“It’s a privilege to be playing at the age of 34 – but it’s not just me, it’s the whole team and family.”

Nadal will play either Borna Coric or Jordan Thompson in the last 16 at the Paris Masters.

A breakdown of Nadal’s wins

It has been a remarkable career for the Spaniard, who turned professional in 2001 and won his first ATP Tour match in 2002 when he defeated Paraguay’s Ramon Delgado in the first round of the Mallorca Open.

He remains 68 wins shy of Lendl, which is within his reach but whether he manages to eclipse Federer and Connors remains to be seen.

British three-time Grand Slam champion Andy Murray has won 676 ATP matches.

Who has Nadal beaten the most?

Long-time rival Novak Djokovic has lost 27 times to Nadal, most recently in last month’s French Open final. The Serb still edges their head-to-head battle, though, with 29 victories.

Next on the list is Nadal’s compatriot David Ferrer, who lost 26 of the 32 meetings against his younger rival.

And spare a thought for Richard Gasquet. The Frenchman is eighth on the list after losing all 16 of his matches against Nadal.

Where has he won most?

Staggeringly, Nadal has secured a 10th of his career victories at the same venue. That is, of course, Roland Garros.

By beating Djokovic to win his 13th French Open title, Nadal became the first player to reach a century of singles wins on the Paris clay.

In total, the Majorcan left-hander has earned 445 victories (from 485 matches) on his favoured surface.

Hard courts have provided 482 wins (from 617 matches) for Nadal, with 71 victories on grass courts and two on now-defunct carpet surfaces.

From 46 minutes to over five hours, how Nadal gets the job done

Nadal’s most emphatic victory at a Grand Slam came with a 6-0 6-1 6-0 win against Georgia’s Nikoloz Basilashvili at the 2017 French Open – the match lasting just 90 minutes.

The Spaniard’s quickest completed win – a victory where an opponent did not retire – was a 46-minute demolition of France’s Florent Serra at the Cincinnati Masters in 2008.

That was one of 14 best-of-three-set matches which Nadal has won either 6-1 6-0 or 6-0 6-1.