Monday, June 06, 2022

Nadal wins French Open Title #14!

I am in absolute awe. Rafa Nadal just won his the French Open for the 14th time! Way to go, Rafa!

By the numbers:
  • His 14 French Open titles matches the total Grand Slam singles title count of Pete Sampras. Remember that up early 2009, 14 was the record for most major title won by a man.
  • He now has 22 Grand Slam singles titles, extending the men's record that he held when he won at the Australian Open this year. He is now 2 major titles ahead of Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic.
  • Rafa is 14-0 in French Open finals. Never losing a Roland Garros final is just mind-boggling, especially when you consider that he played two of the greatest players of all time (Roger and Novak) in the finals a total of seven times. (I guess the rule is, if you wanna beat Rafa at the French, do it before the final.)
  • His win-loss record is 112 wins and 3 losses.
  • This is also the first time in Rafa's career that he won the first two major events of the year. 

Before the tournament started, I thought his chances to win were slim. He injured his rib while playing Indian Wells that left him sidelined for several weeks. He returned to Madrid where he lost to an in-form Carlos Alcaraz. In Rome, his chronic foot problem resurfaced, leading to a fourth round loss to Denis Shapovalov. Meanwhile, Alcaraz won Madrid and Novak won Rome. With no title wins on clay leading up to Roland Garros and his key competitors were both doing very well, the odds seemed stacked against Rafa to win.

As it turned out, Rafa overcame Novak in 4 sets in the quarterfinals. He then faced Zverev in a titanic semifinal that featured many momentum swings. Rafa won the 91-minute first set in a tiebreak. The second set also went to tiebreak until a horrific ankle injury forced Zverev to retire.

In the final, Nadal won easily in straight sets against Casper Ruud, giving him a record-extending 14th Roland Garros title.

Rafa is now tied with Steffi Graf, my all-time favorite player, as both have 22 majors. I also love that there is a picture Steffi at the Rafa Nadal Academy restaurant. (I hope I can visit this place one day and have my photo taken between Steffi and Rafa hahaha).

Many are now wondering whether Rafa can win the Grand Slam (all four majors in a single year). His chances aren't that great, given that he hasn't won Wimbledon in twelve years and he hasn't reached a final since 2011. But if Rafa has proven anything in his career, and especially this year, is that you can never count him out. Whatever happens, Nadal has truly spoiled me and his millions of fans so much with his amazing records and his incredible accomplishments that anything else he achieves is icing on the cake.

On the women's side, Iga Swiatek lived up to her ranking and seeding as she won the French Open title for the second time. She is now on an amazing 35-match winning streak, which comes with 6 consecutive titles. The last time a player won this many matches in a row was when Venus amassed 35 straight matches in 2000, a whopping 22 years ago! Ever since Ash Barty retired, Iga has been the clear #1, playing head and shoulders above the rest of the field. 

Congratulations, Rafa and Iga!

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