Robin Soderling: What happened to world No 4 who stunned Rafael Nadal at French Open?
He is the man who pulled off one of the biggest upsets in tennis history.
Few will ever forget Robin Soderling’s stunning win over Rafael Nadal at the 2009 French Open, with the then-unheralded Swede handing the legendary Spaniard the first of just four Roland Garros defeats.
In the aftermath of the result, Soderling’s career went from strength to strength, becoming one of the best players on the ATP Tour.
But his career came to an unexpectedly premature end, with the former world No 5 last playing in July 2011 – before his eventual retirement in 2015.
We look back at the career of the man who permanently etched his name into tennis history thanks to his Paris exploits.
Before the upset
Before his most famous win, Soderling had achieved a solid level of success – but was not a name known outside of hardcore tennis fans.
The Swede had won three career titles and reached a further six finals, but had never made it to the second week of a Slam.
After finishing 2008 as the world No 17 – his highest year-end ranking to that point – Soderling had dropped down to be the 23rd seed at Roland Garros in 2009.
And there the 24-year-old reached the second week of a Slam for the first time, upsetting 14th seed and future finalist David Ferrer in round three.
But no one fancied his chances against world No 1 Nadal in round four, with the Spaniard a perfect 31-0 in matches at the tournament.
Read More: Rafael Nadal’s Olympic Games record – as he sets sights on Paris 2024
The win
In terms of rankings, there have been bigger shocks in tennis.
But Nadal’s dominant Roland Garros career up until that point – and general dominance on clay throughout his career – makes what Soderling did on May 31st, 2009 a truly seismic moment.
Eyebrows were well and truly raised when the Swede raced to the first set, winning it for the loss of just two games, though it seemed like order had been restored when Nadal won set two in a tiebreak.
However, that was as good as it got for the King of Clay on this occasion.
Soderling responded with a strong third set and, after a nailbiting fourth set, closed out a stunning 6-2, 6-7(2), 6-4, 7-6(2) triumph.
A rare #RolandGarros defeat for Rafael Nadal…
Will the ‘King of Clay’ be back at the #FrenchOpen next year? pic.twitter.com/FKx7Zt6FDf
— Tennis365 (@tennis365com) May 27, 2024
Tour success
What made Soderling’s win even more impressive is that he went on to play the best tennis of his career across the following two years.
The Swede reached his first Grand Slam final that tournament, backing up his Nadal win by defeating Nikolay Davydenko and Fernando Gonzalez – before losing to Roger Federer in the final.
Impressively, he returned to the final 12 months later, beating Federer in the last eight before a straight-sets final loss to Nadal; lightning rarely strikes twice, particularly when concerning Nadal on the dirt.
However, it wasn’t just in Paris he found success.
Later in 2009 he won his fourth career title at the Swedish Open, reached a US Open quarter-final, and qualified for the ATP Finals – reaching the last four and sealing a year-end ranking of eighth.
The 2010 season saw him not only reach a second Roland Garros final, but also Wimbledon and US Open quarter-finals, finishing runner-up at three tournaments and winning two titles – including the Paris Masters.
Soderling ended 2010 as the world No 5 and was in impressive form again in 2011, winning four titles from as many finals and reaching another French Open quarter-final up until July of that season.
Illness battle
After winning the 10th and final title of his career at the Swedish Open, Soderling was initially forced to withdraw from the Canada Open and Cincinnati Masters due to a wrist injury.
But while rehabbing that issue, he fell ill and was forced to withdraw from his US Open round one clash after being diagnosed with mononucleosis.
Sadly, Soderling was never able to play another professional tennis match.
A slow recovery from his illness meant that he was never able to regain full fitness, and he would later detail his struggle with panic attacks and his mental health.
In December 2015, four years after his last match, Soderling announced his retirement from tennis aged 31; his last match came a month short of his 27th birthday.
Read More: Robin Soderling opens up about mental health issues – ‘I am happy to have come out on the other side’
Life after tennis
Despite his playing career ending earlier than expected, he has continued to influence the sport.
While still an inactive player, he launched a clothing brand – RS-Tennis – while he also briefly worked as the Stockholm Open tournament director.
He also previously coached compatriot Elias Ymer, while he served as Sweden’s Davis Cup captain from 2021 to 2023.
Soderling’s career may have been unexpectedly short, but it was certainly sweet – and few will forget what he was able to do at Roland Garros 15 years ago.