It is a new tour de force that has succeeded Rafael Nadal yesterday on the central court of Roland-Garros, his “second home”. The Spaniard quite easily overcame the surprise of the Parisian fortnight, the Norwegian Casper Ruud, who lost in three sets and less than 2h30 of play at the end of a match where the suspense never really was there. Another new feat for the legend Rafa, who thus won the Parisian trophy for the fourteenth time, a resounding record and which brings him even further into the history of his sport. A twenty-second victory in the Grand Slam tournament which also places him two lengths ahead of his historic rivals, Novak Djokovic and Roger Federer.
If the match was less epic than its previous ones, Rafael Nadal was nonetheless moved at the end of the match, bursting with joy and tears after the last point. An emotion widely shared by his clan, present in the stands, as for each edition of Roland-Garros. His wife Xisca Perello in the lead, all those close to the Majorcan measure the resounding feat he has just accomplished despite his significant physical pain. As we can see in the images, the beautiful brunette shared this moment of history with champion’s sister and mother 36 years old. His father Sebastian was also there and we saw him hugging his family members (photos to be found in the slideshow).
I’m always surprised when I win Roland-Garros, even the fourteenth time
A new consecration for the king of clay, who is still pushing the limits of his sport, and savoring each new victory. “I’m always surprised when I win Roland-Garros, even the fourteenth time. If you’re not surprised to win a Grand Slam, you’re super cocky and I don’t see myself like that”he explained after the match at a press conference.
Despite the pain and physical glitches, Rafael Nadal continues to impress everyone and after such a fantastic start to the season, we really want to see him back at Wimbledon in a few weeks.