Rafael Nadal lost the final of the Madrid Open to Roger Federer. This was the first time that Nadal had lost to Federer since the semifinals of the 2007 Tennis Masters Cup. By beating Lleyton Hewitt in the third round of French Open, Nadal set a record of 31 consecutive wins at Roland Garros, beating the previous record of 28 by Björn Borg. This run came to an end on 31 May 2009, when Nadal lost to eventual runner-up, Robin Söderling in the 4th round. This was Nadal's first and, until 2015, only loss at the French Open. After his surprise defeat
Rafael Nadal and was once again defeated in straight sets. Nadal then won his 29th Masters 1000 title in Monte Carlo; it was his tenth victory in the principality, the most wins by any player at a single tournament in the Open era. Nadal won his 18th ATP 500 title in Barcelona without dropping a set, also marking his tenth victory in Barcelona. Nadal next played in the Madrid Open, where he defeated Dominic Thiem to tie Novak Djokovic's all-time Masters record of 30 titles. Nadal went on to beat Stan Wawrinka in straight sets and win a record tenth French Open