Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer both suffered THIS rare failure in unusual 2020 season

Taking a look back, the 2020 tennis season was unprecedented in many ways. For starters, it was the first time since the World War II that the Wimbledon Championships were cancelled along with most of the grass season. This year's US Open witnessed a new Grand Slam champion. Dominic Thiem became the first man born in the 1990s to win a Grand Slam singles title and the first new Grand Slam singles champion since Marin Čilić won at the US Open in 2014.

However, with the youngsters' gain came the loss of two of the greats of the game. In the history books since 2002, Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer also made history this season, but in a slightly less positive light. Perhaps a sign of the downfall of the 'Big Three' is the fact that neither Nadal nor Federer was able to score a Masters 1000 title this season - the first time this has happened since 2003. Together, the duo have 63 titles at the Masters 1000 level.

Also Read | Roger Federer Accused By German Official Of 'manipulating' ATP Rankings System For Himself

Also Read | Australian Open 2021 To Cost Whopping ₹609 CR, Recovery From COVID-19 To Take '5 Years'

Rafael Nadal Grand Slams and 2020 season

Rafael Nadal started his 2020 season on a major high, reaching the finals of the ATP Cup in January and the Mexican Open in March. He followed this up with a quarter-final appearance at the Australian Open before the pandemic forced the circuit into a break. Coming back to the tour, Nadal decided to skip out on the hardcourt season in the US and went straight into the Masters 1000 event in Rome. While not a favourite to win, Rafa's quick dismissal at the hands of Diego Schwartzman came as a surprise. 

After his record-equalling 20th Grand Slam victory at the French Open, Rafa seemed poised to take anything that came his way. Perhaps with this confidence boost in mind, the Spaniard decided to take another stab at the Paris Open - a title that has eluded him for since his first appearance there in 2003. Unable to break the curse, Nadal lost the semi-final in straight sets to Sascha Zverev. This leaves him with 35 Masters 1000 titles - one less than Novak Djokovic - going into 2021. 

Also Read | Nick Kyrgios Plans To Take Up Another Sport After Retirement And It Is NOT Basketball

Roger Federer injury and 2020 season 

Meanwhile, Roger Federer has had a short year on the circuit - his longest break since the 2016 season. The former World No.1 has played only one ATP level tournament this year. Federer made it to the semi-finals of the Australian Open where he lost to the eventual champion Novak Djokovic in straight sets. Since winning his first Masters 1000 title back in 2002, Federer has won 27 more titles at the Masters 1000 level. He will go into 2021 hoping to win a few more before the end of his illustrious career. 

Also Read | Ukrainian Tennis Player Banned In Match-fixing Case

Image Credits: AP