Follow us on Google Discover Rafael Nadal heaped praise on this ATP player even though he had never reached the top 100 in the rankings.
Nadal won 22 Grand Slam titles in his career before he retired at the Davis Cup Finals last year.
As a result of having such a decorated career over an extended period of time, Nadal is considered one of the greatest tennis players of all time.
This means that he knows exactly what it takes to become one of the best, and Nadal thought he had spotted a ‘special’ talent two years ago.
Photo by Adam Pretty/Getty ImagesAbedellah Shelbayh: The ATP player who Rafael Nadal called ‘special’
That player is Abedellah Shelbayh, who is often referred to as just Abdullah, the ATP player who was scouted by Toni Nadal.
Shelbayh, who actually switched to being left-handed to emulate his idol Rafael Nadal, was born in Jordan.
At just 14 years old, Shelbayh moved to Mallorca to join the Rafa Nadal Academy after impressing Toni Nadal in his visit to Jordan.
Three years later, Shelbayh graduated from the academy, before turning professional at the end of the 2022 season.
After impressing in 2023, Shelbayh received a wildcard for the Next Gen ATP Finals, which features the best young players in a year-end tournament.
When speaking about the Jordanian’s participation in the Next Gen Finals, Nadal praised Shelbayh and suggested that he was a unique talent after practicing with him.
“To describe Abdullah, you have to analyse his talent,” Nadal told the ATPTour.com at the time. “I think he’s a player with a very special innate talent, capable of doing things that most can’t. With his style of play, it makes opponents feel very uncomfortable.
“I know because I’ve trained with him a number of times. And he’s added something very important to that: In the last year and a half he has taken a step forward in the way he experiences tennis.
“Really, he has realised that what he wants is to be a professional tennis player and he is working very hard toward that. I can only congratulate him for his dedication and for his hard work and encourage him to continue on that road.
“He’s had a very positive season, picking up good results, and has climbed up the rankings. Now an amazing moment is coming up for him, playing in the Next Gen ATP Finals. I’d like to wish him all the luck in the world. I’m sure it’ll be a very special tournament for him.”
Shelbayh only won one of his three matches at the Next Gen ATP Finals that year, beating rising American talent Alex Michelsen, but it was still a historic season for him.
How did Abedallah Shelbayh make history for his country?
Jordan is a nation with very little tennis history, and Shelbayh had already made history before he graduated from the Rafa Nadal Academy.
In 2020 after just turning 16 years old, Shelbayh became the first ever Jordanian player in history to have an ATP ranking.
This is only a small part of the history that Shelbayh has been able to create for his country, as just one year later he reached the Wimbledon junior doubles final alongside Daniel Rincon.
In 2022, Shelbayh became the first Jordanian player in history to win a match on the ATP Challenger Tour, but it was 2023 where he had his major breakthrough.
That was the year where Shelbayh made his main ATP Tour debut, before winning his first ever match at the clay court tournament in Banja Luka, Bosnia and Herzegovina.
Just five months later, Shelbayh would play a Challenger tournament in Charleston, where he would go all the way to win the title.
All of this new success meant that Shelbayh was able to reach a career-high ranking of world number 181 in January 2024.
There was a lot of expectation on the shoulders of Shelbayh after this, but the Jordanian struggled in both 2024 and the first half of the 2025 season, which includes going on a 13-match losing streak earlier this year.
As a result, Shelbayh fell outside the top 400 in the ATP rankings in September, but something appears to have clicked for him since then.
Since suffering that dramatic drop down the rankings, Shelbayh has won 10 of his last 12 matches, which includes winning his second career ATP Challenger title, this time in Las Vegas.
Shelbayh is now back inside the top 300 and will look to continue his rediscovered form to return to Grand Slam qualifying next year, with a first main draw appearance at a major tournament still eluding him.