Rafael Nadal’s Positive Return Will Skyrocket Tennis’ Popularity

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at Internationaled.org

Published: February 20, 2013

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With Rafael Nadal quickly returning to the athletic, versatile form that made him one of the greatest defensive players of all-time, tennis is about to enter brand-new territory. 

The sport has certainly been better rounded from top to bottom in the past, but never has it seen four marketable superstars with such a stranglehold on the summit.

In fact, Nadal, Novak Djokovic, Roger Federer and Andy Murray's dominance since 2008 has been truly staggering:

Player Grand Slams ATP Masters ATP World Tour Olympics Total Rafael Nadal 8 12 0 1 21 Novak Djokovic 6 11 2 0 19 Roger Federer 5 7 2 0 14 Andy Murray 1 8 0 1 10 Percent of Total Tourneys 95.2 84.4 80.0 100 87.7 You could even make an argument that Juan Martin Del Potro, who won the only other Grand Slam (2009 US Open), transforms the "Big Four" into the "Fabulous Five," but for now, we'll stick with the quartet. 



Now, you may be thinking, "Tim, if these four have had such a dominant control over tennis since 2008, then what does Nadal's recent return from injury have anything to do with it?"

Well, I'm glad you asked, reader. 

The biggest difference between now and when Nadal was sidelined after his early 2012 Wimbledon exit is Murray.

With Nadal out of the picture, the 25-year-old ascended to a new level. He lost that Wimbledon final to Federer, but many saw it as the major turning point when he went from star to superstar.

After that, he bested Federer in the Olympics for gold, won his first major at the subsequent U.S. Open and defeated Fed-Ex to return to the Australian Open finals to start 2013. 



The Brit simply elevated his play to a place that we had never seen before, firmly entrenching himself in Nadal's spot of the "Big Three." 

But now the Spaniard is back, giving tennis an inimitable foursome. 

In his return from a lengt...
Article Source: Bleacher Report - Tennis

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