Spaniard Rafael Nadal was the first player to qualify for the Barclays ATP World Tour Finals, which represents his fifth straight qualification (4-4 record) for the circuit-finale.

2009 In Review

Nadal started the 2009 season in red-hot form when he captured his sixth Grand Slam title at the Australian Open (d. Federer), which represented his first major hard-court crown. In the semi-finals, he had come through a dramatic encounter with Fernando Verdasco that lasted five hours and 14 minutes.

More hard-court success on the ATP World Tour circuit followed for Nadal, in the form of a runner-up finish at the ABN AMRO World Tennis Tournament in Rotterdam (l. to Murray) and his second BNP Paribas Open title at Indian Wells (d. Murray).

Nadal’s clay-court season was highlighted by three successive ATP World Tour titles at the Monte-Carlo Rolex Masters (d. Djokovic), Barcelona Open Banco Sabadell (d. Ferrer) and the Internazionali BNL d'Italia in Rome (d. Djokovic).

In late May, the 23-year-old Mallorcan suffered his first loss at Roland Garros — where he was a four-time defending champion — succumbing to eventual runner-up Robin Soderling of Sweden in the fourth round.

Nadal made a welcome return to the ATP World Tour circuit in August, having recovered from tendinitis in both of his knees, and turned in strong performances at the ATP World Tour Masters 1000 tournaments in North America. Despite struggling with an abdominal strain, he reached the US Open semi-finals for the second year in a row, losing to eventual champion Juan Martin del Potro.

The left-hander enjoyed a gradual return to top form and fitness in the lead-up to the season finale, reaching his eighth tour-level final of the season at Shanghai ATP Masters 1000 presented by Rolex (l. to Davydenko) and posting a semi-final effort at the BNP Paribas Masters (l. to Djokovic). With a 64-11 mark, he is one of three players to record at least 60 match wins this season.

Finals History

Nadal secured his qualification for the Barclays ATP World Tour Finals in mid-May.

He will be making his third appearance at the circuit-finale (4-4 record), having reached the 2006 and 2007 semi-finals (l. to Federer both times). He was unable to compete at the prestigious circuit-finale in 2005 (left foot) and 2008 (right knee tendinitis).