Two days after his 36th birthday, Rafael Nadal sought to look for his 14th win in 14 finals at Roland Garros. 23-year-old Casper Rudd was his opponent, but the young Norwegian was very impressed with the circumstances and his opponent.
At the start of the second set it looked exciting, when Rudd crossed Nadal’s serve from nowhere and went 3-1. You set Nadal on fire even more.
The Spanish gravel master raised his level a bit and knocked Rod from pole to pole. Nadal did not allow Rodd anymore and finished the match with 11 consecutive games: 6-3, 6-3, 6-0.
For Nadal, this is his 14th victory at Roland Garros, since his debut in Paris in 2005, he has lost only 4 matches on clay in the French capital. At the age of 36, he is also the oldest French Grand Slam winner.
It is also his 22nd Grand Slam victory. Nadal has two wins more than Roger Federer, who has been in the breach for a while, and Novak Djokovic. The Serbian could not participate in the Australian Open because he was not vaccinated and lost to Nadal in the quarter-finals in Paris.
The question now is whether Rafael Nadal will return to Roland Garros, he has been suffering from a chronic foot injury for several years. There was not much to note this year: 4 top players with Felix Auger-Aliassime (ATP-9), Novak Djokovic (ATP-1), Alexander Zverev (ATP-3) and Kasper Ruud (ATP-8) defeated 10.
Nadal is not thinking of stopping at the moment. “This victory gives energy to perseverance and continuity,” the Spaniard said in his victory speech. “I don’t know what the future will bring, but I’m trying to keep fighting.”
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