Rafael Nadal won 14 French Open titles and is widely regarded as the greatest clay-court player in tennis history.
The legendary Spaniard left his mark on the Parisian clay, but will anyone break his record?
Is a French Open boycott realistic?
Players aren't happy with the prize money on offer…
Two-time French Open champion Jim Courier has now answered that very question.
Jim Courier admits it’s ‘unlikely’ anyone will win 14 or more French Open titles
During Tennis Channel’s coverage of the Italian Open, Courier was asked if he believes Nadal’s French Open record will last ‘for a while’.
“You’d like to think so!” he said.
“I mean, it seems unlikely [that anyone will break the record].
“It wasn’t likely that [Rafael] Nadal was going to be healthy enough to even play 14, period!
“Let alone win 14 with a couple of losses and injuries strewn in the middle of it.
Rafael Nadal’s French Open final record (14-0)
| Final | Opponent | Result | Score |
| 2005 | Mariano Puerta | WIN | 6-7, 6-3, 6-1, 7-5 |
| 2006 | Roger Federer | WIN | 1-6, 6-1, 6-4, 7-6 |
| 2007 | Roger Federer | WIN | 6-3, 4-6, 6-3, 6-4 |
| 2008 | Roger Federer | WIN | 6-1, 6-3, 6-0 |
| 2010 | Robin Soderling | WIN | 6-4, 6-2, 6-4 |
| 2011 | Roger Federer | WIN | 7-5, 7-6, 5-7, 6-1 |
| 2012 | Novak Djokovic | WIN | 6-4, 6-3, 2-6, 7-5 |
| 2013 | David Ferrer | WIN | 6-3, 6-2, 6-3 |
| 2014 | Novak Djokovic | WIN | 3-6, 7-5, 6-2, 6-4 |
| 2017 | Stan Wawrinka | WIN | 6-2, 6-3, 6-1 |
| 2018 | Dominic Thiem | WIN | 6-4, 6-3, 6-2 |
| 2019 | Dominic Thiem | WIN | 6-3, 5-7, 6-1, 6-1 |
| 2020 | Novak Djokovic | WIN | 6-0, 6-2, 7-5 |
| 2022 | Casper Ruud | WIN | 6-3, 6-3, 6-0 |
“But I don’t think you can ever say never in these scenarios, you just don’t know what’s coming.
“Because no one could see Nadal’s… You could see how dominant he was going to be, but the fact that he was able to last that long, that was a bigger surprise than his ability to keep winning, honestly.”
Former world number one Tracy Austin was also keen to share her thoughts.
“I think at 24, Nadal already had a couple,” she said.
“He was already moving along. But you’re exactly right. To play that many Roland Garros, that’s unbelievable.”
This year’s French Open favourite, Jannik Sinner, is 24.
The Italian has yet to win Roland Garros, but with his closest rival and two-time defending champion, Carlos Alcaraz, out injured, this is his best chance yet.
But even if Sinner wins this year, the chances of him breaking Nadal’s record are slim.
The earliest he could break the record is in 2041, when Sinner would be 39.
And that would require him to win 15 consecutive French Open titles, a near-impossible feat.
Courier and Austin also listened to Nadal’s iconic ‘what happened in Madrid’ quote.
“What I can tell you, that year, what he was referring to, he’d lost in the semi-finals of Monte-Carlo, Barcelona, and Madrid, before winning that ninth title here in Rome,” said Courier.
“I just love the simplicity of thought from Nadal.
“He doesn’t understand that people don’t think like him. He doesn’t understand that a lot of athletes have too much complexity in their minds; he was able to crystallise his focus on what was essential, and that was part of his genius.
“He didn’t waste any energy on things that didn’t matter to where he was going.
“Part of the genius is to have really simple thoughts and athletic ability. If you marry that, you can have a really great career, because you don’t overcomplicate things.
“That’s absolutely, in a nutshell, what you have to do on a tennis court, as well, point to point,” added Austin.
“You can’t remember the break point that you had two games ago, or what might happen if I get broken here in the future.
“It’s literally point by point, next point, and that’s what he did better than anybody.
“It’s hard to do; everybody kind of knows that in the tennis world, it’s another thing to execute.”
Courier and Austin were both full of praise for Nadal, agreeing it will take something special to break his record…
Who else could break Rafael Nadal’s French Open record?
Nadal’s fellow Spaniard, Alcaraz, is the most likely candidate.
Alcaraz won back-to-back titles in 2024 and 2025 to become a two-time champion at 22.
Unfortunately for Alcaraz, he won’t return to defend his French Open title in 2026 due to a wrist injury.
Still, he remains better placed to challenge Nadal’s record than anyone else.
He’ll resume his search for title number three in 2027, but will be forced to watch from home as the likes of Sinner, Alexander Zverev, and Novak Djokovic battle it out this year.
The 2026 French Open begins on Sunday, May 24.
