As of July 2007, he is ranked No. 2 in the world. He is a three-time Grand Slam champion, having won three consecutive French Open singles titles (2005-07), and has twice been a runner-up at Wimbledon (2006-07). Nadal is undefeated in his career at the French Open, having won all 21 matches he has played en route to his three championships. He also holds the longest winning streak among male players on a single surface in the open era. From April 2005 to May 2007, he won a record 81 consecutive clay court matches, before being defeated by World Number One Roger Federer in the 2007 Hamburg Masters final.
Nadal was born in Manacor, Mallorca to Sebastián and Ana María; he also has a younger sister named María Isabel. His father owns a restaurant and a glass-making business. His uncle, Miguel Ángel Nadal, is a retired footballer who played for RCD Mallorca, FC Barcelona, and the Spanish national team. To this day, Nadal remains a supporter of RCD Mallorca, as well as Real Madrid. His other uncle, Toni, is his current coach and introduced him to the sport when Nadal was three years old.
Although Nadal plays left-handed, he is naturally right-handed. When he was younger, his coach, Toni Nadal, decided that his two-handed backhand would benefit from a strong right arm, so he taught Rafael to play with his left.
It was not until Nadal was 12 that he decided to pursue a career in tennis instead of football. In May 2001, when Nadal was 14-years-old, tennis great Pat Cash played a clay-court exhibition match against him. Cash, who was originally scheduled to play Boris Becker, was reluctant to play against Nadal, taking this rearranged match as an offense. Cash lost the game by a close margin.
Nadal's playing style is best tailored for clay courts, with a strong two-handed backhand, strong angled topspin strokes, strong mobility on the court, and a preference to play from the deep court. He is naturally right-handed, but he plays left-handed. Nadal is extremely athletic, and tends to go after every shot, even apparent winners from his opponents.
Nadal's serve is not considered one of his strengths, but his topspin groundstroke forehands from the baseline are. With excellent accuracy, power, and consistency, his topspin is one of his assets. Neither his offensive nor defensive playing style are considered weaknesses.
Overall, Nadal is an aggressive counterpuncher, forcing his opponents to make errors with his powerful topspin, his speed, and his athleticism.
Nadal uses a Babolat Aeropro Drive Cortex racket and his string of choice is Babolat Pro Hurricane Tour. Nadal wears Nike sportswear, most notably Capri (3/4) pants. He has "Vamos Rafa" ("Let's Go Rafa") written on his shoes, a common exhortation by his fans. Wikipedia
