Tennis: Rafael Nadal beats Novak Djokovic to win record-setting 13th French Open

Rafael Nadal tied Roger Federer with 20 Grand Slam titles by producing a near-perfect performance against Novak Djokovic in the final of the French Open.

Nadal equaled rival Federer in the most individual tennis championships won by a man and added to his own record at Roland Garros with No. 13 on red clay, courtesy of a surprisingly dominant 6-0, 6- 2, 7. -5 win over ranking No. 1 Djokovic this morning.

When Nadal finished it off with an ace, he dropped to his knees, grinned widely and waved his arms.

He did not give up a set in his favorite tournament this year.

“The love story that I have with this city, and with this field, is unforgettable,” Nadal said.

He deflected a question during the post-match on-court interview on how to catch Federer, saying his focus was still the French Open.

“I spent the most important moments, or most of the important moments, of my tennis career here,” Nadal said.

Nadal, No. 2 in the rankings, improved to 100-2 at the French Open, including a combined 26-0 in the semifinals and finals, and picked up his fourth consecutive title in Paris. The 34-year-old southpaw from Spain previously put together streaks of four French Open championships from 2005-08, then five in a row from 2010-14, to accompany his four trophies at the US Open, two at Wimbledon and one at the Open. from Australia.

Nadal is now on par with Federer for the first time since every man had zero Slams to his name in 2003. Federer first came to Wimbledon that year; Nadal naturally earned his first win in France in 2005, at which point he was trailing 4-0.

Djokovic’s loss left him at 17 majors; had he won, the trio’s standings would have been 20-19-18.

Nadal is the oldest French Open champion since 1972, and the 15+ years between his first and most recent Grand Slam title is the longest span for a man.

This was the 56th installment of Nadal vs. Djokovic, the most encounters between any pair of men in the professional era, and the ninth in a Grand Slam final, tying Nadal vs.

Djokovic had won 14 of the last 18 meetings against Nadal and led 29-26 overall, including a 6-3, 6-2, 6-3 victory in the 2019 Australian Open final.

Nadal allowed Djokovic one game less this time.

The key stat: Nadal capped his unforced errors to 14 at 183 points, impressive against anyone, but especially against someone of Djokovic’s caliber, who racked up 52.

The long-awaited showdown between these two titans of their sport was the first indoor men’s final of the French Open, played under the new retractable roof of Court Philippe Chatrier. The day started with blue skies and sunshine, but eventually dark clouds gathered, and when the rain came half an hour before the scheduled start, the canopy was closed.

From its stand in the VIP section, the trophy, La Coupe des Mousquetaires, gleamed under electric lighting that finished off the strong contrasts of light and shadow that could be seen on the pitch in the autumn afternoon sun.

This was also the first French Open contested with players walking the pitch in masks due to the coronavirus pandemic, the reason the 15-day event was changed from May to June to September and October and the crowds were limited. to 1,000 per day. On Sunday, those lucky enough to attend were mostly concentrated in dense groups not too socially distant in the first 20 or more rows; the ceiling helped amplify the cheers and roars that reverberated around the enclosed space.

Perhaps due to the lopsided nature of this final, however, they were often silent, so much so that the sound of Djokovic could be heard removing the plastic cover from a new racket.

The postponement led to colder and wetter weather than usual, which affects the way clay affects shots, causing them to bounce lower and slower. There was a school of thought that could get in the way of Nadal, much like this year’s switch to a slightly heavier tennis ball.

Too much for that.

What did Nadal not do well throughout the tournament and on this historic day?

He faced Djokovic’s predilection for direct shots far better than the 33-year-old Serb’s previous foes, and used anticipation and speed to temper the success of that strategy.

He took five of Djokovic’s first six service games and broke seven times in total.

He himself faced only five break points, saving four.

Over two hours later, when Djokovic employed a backhand winner to get his opening break on his fifth down, making it a 3 in the third set, he let out a couple of roars and waved his arms for more noise from the fans. .

But less than half an hour later, it would all be over.

The first set was a 45-minute masterclass led by Nadal, who came out incredibly sharp and clean, directing his forehands at high revs precisely where he wanted them and using his offensive defense skills to slide and stretch and throw balls back. with aggression.

Appearing resigned at first, Djokovic was generally less noisy than he usually is when fighting, not yelling at himself or his entourage, and showing no anger in other ways, such as the post hit of a ball hit by a linesman. at the US Open last month, earning a disqualification.

Instead, Djokovic stayed to puff out his cheeks or roll his eyes, lower his head or sink his shoulders, exasperated with himself, perhaps, but also unable to figure out how to counter the relentless perfection on the other side of the net.

It was just the fourth set 6-0 lost by Djokovic in 341 career Grand Slam matches, with two of the others coming in 2005, the year he made his major tournament debut.

As he sat in his side seat digesting that shutout from a first set Sunday, four Djokovic fans in blue jerseys and white baseball caps stood and sang in the stands, his chorus drowning out the light patter of drizzle hitting the ceiling.

By the end of the second set, Djokovic had made 30 unforced errors, Nadal only six.

Djokovic made things more interesting in the third, but it was too little, too late.

Nadal was simply too good, as he almost always is at the French Open, and as good as any other man in Grand Slam action.