Rafael Nadal becomes first tennis star to wear $1 million watch on the tennis court

The 'King of Clay' Rafael Nadal now has a statement timepiece to fit his title. The 34-year-old has become the first person to wear a million-dollar watch on the court, courtesy of Richard Mille. The Swiss luxury watchmakers have produced the RM 27-04 Tourbillon Rafael Nadal for the champion as he vies for his 13th Roland Garros title at French Open 2020. 

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Rafa's decade-long association with Richard Mille

According to the Richard Mille website, when Rafael Nadal first met the watchmaker in 2008 he didn't give much thought to wearing a watch on the field. After a lot of convincing, Rafa and Mille created what was at the time, the world's lightest Tourbillon. Their most iconic piece was yellow and red to represent the colours of the Spanish flag, and the skeletonized top was created to resemble Rafa's bull's head emblem. For the French Open 2020 piece, the creators were inspired by the tensile strength of a tennis racket, which is why the watch mechanics are set on a wire mesh that closely resembles a tennis racket.

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Rafael Nadal French Open watch price

The watch weighs only 30 grams and can resist accelerations of more than 12,000 g’s to protect it from almost anything that comes at it. The watch colours have been chosen to match Nadal's matchday outfit at French Open 2020. The blue strap and orange windup knob go perfectly with Rafa's all-blue ensemble and Fuschia headband and wristbands. The watch uses Richard Mille's TitaCarb® technology for the case and has been designed to withstand the rigours of a tennis match. As with all of Richard Mille's Rafael Nadal watch collections, only 50 pieces of this watch will be crafted. It will cost $1,050,000. 

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Rafael Nadal at French Open 2020

On his way to equalling Roger Federer's Grand Slam title record of 20, Nadal has made it to the quarter-final of French Open 2020. The number two seed will face young Italian firebrand Jannik Sinner on October 6. Sinner will be in high spirits after defeating US Open 2020 runner-up Alexander Zverev in round four but may have to be wary as Zverev had a fever and a cold during their match.

Nadal meanwhile, is making a comeback to tennis after a six-month-long break. The 'King of Clay' has not dropped a set at the tournament so far, defeating Egor Gerasimov, Mackenzie McDonald, Stefano  Travaglia, and Sebastian Korda in straight sets. If he wins, he will meet the winner of the Dominic Thiem vs Diego Schwartzman match in the semi-final. 

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Image Credits: Richard Mille website