Nadal was sport’s comeback man of the year, collecting 10 titles from 14 finals, including a landmark eighth French Open, a second US Open which took his career majors tally to 13, and a record 26th Masters.
He ended the season with 75 wins against just seven losses and another $14.5 million banked to take his career earnings past the $60 million mark.
It was a rebirth that got off to a faltering start when the Spaniard, who had been out of action for seven months, reappeared at the modest Chilean venue of Vina del Mar in February. His run to the final was ended by Horacio Zeballos, ensuring the journeyman Argentine a rare mention in despatches.
By November, Nadal had wrapped-up the year-ending world number one spot for a third time.
“It’s very special what happened this year. For me, the emotions of this year after a tough time have been fantastic,” said Nadal, shrugging off his ATP World Tour Finals loss to Djokovic in London.
It was a year to forget for Federer. He failed to reach a Grand Slam final for the first time since 2002 and won only a solitary title in Halle as his ranking slumped to seventh in the world.
He ended the season with 75 wins against just seven losses and another $14.5 million banked to take his career earnings past the $60 million mark.
It was a rebirth that got off to a faltering start when the Spaniard, who had been out of action for seven months, reappeared at the modest Chilean venue of Vina del Mar in February. His run to the final was ended by Horacio Zeballos, ensuring the journeyman Argentine a rare mention in despatches.
By November, Nadal had wrapped-up the year-ending world number one spot for a third time.
“It’s very special what happened this year. For me, the emotions of this year after a tough time have been fantastic,” said Nadal, shrugging off his ATP World Tour Finals loss to Djokovic in London.
It was a year to forget for Federer. He failed to reach a Grand Slam final for the first time since 2002 and won only a solitary title in Halle as his ranking slumped to seventh in the world.