King of Clay Nadal aims to reign on hard court

The undisputed King of Clay, Rafa Nadal, could soon extend his reign to the hard court after establishing himself as the red-hot favourite for the US Open with back-to-back wins in Montreal and Cincinnati.

With eight French Open titles, Nadal may be the best ever on the dirt but the Spaniard has also stood tall this year on the American hard courts, where he remains unbeaten with a 15-0 record.

"On clay, we only had three [Masters events], I won two, and I played the final," Nadal said after grinding out a 7-6 (10-8), 7-6 (7-3) win over American John Isner in the final of the Western and Southern Open.

"The results on clay were amazing. On hard, I play three, I won all three. Is only one more match. That's all. I think it's just a coincidence, but no doubt I am a better player on clay than on hard."

Some would debate that assessment based on Nadal's play on the hard courts this season which - based on his record - has so far been flawless.

To be fair, Nadal has already proven himself to be a man for all surfaces with grand slams titles on clay, grass and hard court. With the exception of grass and his opening-round slip up at Wimbledon, the Spaniard has impressed on all surfaces again this season.

He added to his grand slam collection at the French Open and has captured five of seven Masters Series events, including three-of-four hard-court stops.