An intimate biography of tennis''s living legend Rafael Nadal.

Tennis is not short on history. When Nadal arrived on the scene in 2005, the record for men''s singles titles at the French Open stood at six, held by Bjorn Borg. Almost twenty years later, Nadal has more than doubled Borg''s total with a mind-boggling fourteen titles. His record will undoubtedly remain his signature achievement - the stat that will define him in memory twenty, fifty, even a hundred years from now. Fourteen certainly looks like the only major tennis record that will never be broken even if Nadal, a modest champion despite his flashy résumé, rejects that kind of definitive thinking.

Nadal has won big and won often on any of tennis''s surfaces, securing two Wimbledon titles on grass and four U.S. Opens on acrylic hardcourts. But clay, the slowest and grittiest of the game''s playgrounds, is where it all comes together best for his explosive movement and warrior mindset. Clay is the canvas on which he has mastered his choreography, underlining the precision, speed, and raw power required to accomplish one of the most impressive sporting achievements of the 21st century - it is the essential stuff of his life and success.