Style Points Flashback: The evolution of Rafa Nadal’s Roland Garros-winning style

Who wore what? Style Points breaks down the latest collabs, kits and fashion statements from around the tennis world.

This past Sunday in Paris, 36-year-old Rafael Nadal triumphed once again on Court Philippe-Chatrier, clinching an astonishing 14th Roland Garros title. The win also extended his lead in the Grand Slam race by two, with an Open Era record 22nd major title.

As if to drive home just how massive of a feat it was, Nadal’s victory took place 17 years to the day and on the same courts as his very first Grand Slam win back in 2005.

Back then, that scrappy teenager from Mallorca took the world by storm—not just with his world-beating tennis, but with a head-turning, swashbuckling Nike outfit that would quickly become his signature look.

But nearly two decades later, that kid is all grown up—and so is his on-court style.

In honor of Nadal’s victory, Style Points breaks down his Roland Garros-winning style: from the first in 2005, all the way to the 14th in 2022.

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Most fans think of “vintage Rafa” and picture sleeveless shirts and very long shorts, but what if we told you that look was actually designed for his 2005 breakout season?

Sponsored by Nike since the start of his career, a young Nadal took his first steps on the ATP Tour in 2002 wearing pretty much what any other player was wearing at the time: a baggy shirt with sleeves down to his elbows and shorts that hit well above the knee.

The only ‘Rafa’ part of this look was the headband, a strip of cloth that has endured in the Spaniard’s wardrobe since his earliest pro days, across the decades and through many fashion eras.

But ahead of his long-awaited Roland Garros debut in 2005, Nike had cooked up something special—or at least, wholly unique—for the then 18-year-old.

“Rafael Nadal, whose pirate pants made him look as if he should be scampering up the rigging of a galleon, seems certain to plunder the treasure chests of tournaments for years to come,” wrote The Independent after his Monte-Carlo win in 2005.

Nadal was already an established force on the tour before he made his first Roland Garros appearance, having made his first Grand Slam appearance at Wimbledon in 2003. But despite his obvious clay-court prowess, it would be another two years before the Spaniard finally touched down in Paris—his debut had been delayed due to various injuries, including the first signs of what would eventually be diagnosed as Mueller-Weiss Syndrome in his left foot.

And what an entrance Nadal made.

This green and white Nike outfit—complete with an 18-inch inseam on the shorts—was an instant sensation, if only because no one had ever seen anything like this worn in a tennis match.

And it certainly made his first Roland Garros victories all the more memorable. As Christopher Clarey of The New York Times put it, back in 2005 after his first Roland Garros triumph:

“Nadal is also difficult to ignore because of his appearance. He has long, dark hair and high cheekbones, and then there are his tennis clothes: a jarring blend of past and present, with his long white pants evoking the golden age of the game and his bright sleeveless shirts evoking nothing but the 21st century.”

The Sleeveless Shirt and Pirate Shorts Era (2005-2008) was merely a blip in Nadal’s fashion chronology. But the oft-debated look immediately became his signature style, and an image that somehow captured his youth and exuberance in such a way that still, more than a decade since he hung up the clam-diggers, it’s still associated with Nadal himself.

In addition to being eye-catching, the outfit served a dual purpose. First, it strategically concealed his biggest vulnerabilities (in other words, his already dodgy knees, which accumulated more strapping with every passing year) and highlighted his most visible strengths (read: those massive biceps).

And second, it also set up the perfect aesthetic contrast between Nadal and his biggest rival: Roger Federer, who oozed elegance on the court both by his own nature and by design, with the help of their shared sponsor Nike.

But just as quickly as the Sleeveless Shirt and Pirate Shorts Era came, it was suddenly over at the end of 2008—a new fashion era was dawning for Nadal, but not everyone was pleased.

“It is being called, by some, the most controversial clothing change in all of sports,” wrote the Associated Press, while the Australian Age observed “anger, disbelief [and] hurt among the Vamos brigade.”

In major news that rocked many Rafans to their very core, when Nadal was spotted in Australia beginning his preparations for the 2009 season, the sleeveless shirts and long shorts were nowhere to be seen. What was seen? A bit of leg, as Nadal’s shorts now peeked over his knees once again.

"For sure, when you have a change, some people like [it], other people don't," Nadal said at the time, diplomatic as always. "Not everybody liked the sleeveless. Right now [it’s] gonna be the same, no?"

Of course, no one cared much about how long his shorts were when Nadal was lifting his first Australian Open trophy by the end of the tournament.

But after Nadal crashed out of Roland Garros for the first time later that same year—due to a chronic knee injury and a godly Robin Soderling effort—some fans made their displeasure known, and lay the blame on the kit itself.

Fans even circulated online petitions demanding Nike to “bring back the sleeveless”, a cry that’s been repeated many times by many fans during Nadal’s career.

Even his rival Federer agreed: “I think it’s a pity he gave up his pirate pants and the sleeveless [shirts],” the Swiss player said in 2010. “I thought our styles were colliding even more then. I kind of miss it.”

But Rafa and Nike had no interest in going backwards. While the long shorts and sleeveless shirts were clearly a signature look, it was also clear that commercially, it was a tough sell.

The combo didn’t take off on the ATP Tour, with only Nadal sporting the peculiar style. And few recreational players would dare to show up at their own public courts or tennis clubs wearing that outfit, either. And with Nadal himself shedding some of his muscle bulk during this era in favor of speed and agility, the look wouldn’t have made sense for the leaner “Rafa-Lite”.

Instead, Nadal and Nike replaced that look with another iconic image: the Spaniard’s signature Raging Bull logo, which was unveiled in 2013. The Nadal name was now associated with more mature, muted color schemes and ever shrinking shorts—down to seven inches in 2014, hacking nearly a foot off from the original 18-inch inseam of yesteryear.

Sure, we still see flashes of the vibrant colors and patterns from Nadal’s early days. And he does, every now and then, break out the sleeveless shirts at a tournament or two. But the clam-digger days and ‘swashbuckling’ look are firmly in the past.

The seven-inch shorts, the shirts with sleeves and, as always, the bandana, are now his signature style—and the new sweet spot for Nike, who can now market the look to a wider audience.

While his Grand Slam trophy cabinet grows more crowded every year, Nadal’s on-court fashion has stayed a stylish constant in the years since his big makeover. The only major shift happened in 2019, when the Raging Bull logo that usually adorned his right shoulder now migrated to front and center—right alongside the Nike Swoosh.

It’s a symbolic and fitting way to announce that the kid from Mallorca has more than just grown up—with 22 Grand Slams he's now become a legend, and so has his multi-million dollar brand.

“I had been using those long shorts from 2005 until 2008,” Rafa explained in 2018. “It was, you know, something different and I enjoyed it, but at that point I felt like it was the moment for a change.

“I felt that I was not a kid anymore.”