Adya Menon
11th October 2020
With unmatched agility, sport and finesse, the 20th Grand Slam Singles Championship was conquered by Rafael Nadal, thrashing the world number one 6-0 6-2 7-5, helping him reach a tie to Roger Federer's record. This win was also Rafael Nadal's 13th title at the French Open.
Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic, ranked No. 4 and No. 1 respectively in the history of men's singles by the association of tennis professionals, were overwhelmed by Nadal on Sunday. Also known as the King of Clay, Nadal slew Djokovic and aced the ending, which also happened to be their 56th meeting. The Spaniard claimed his 100th career match win at the Roland Garros. In the last three Grand Slams, Djokovic defeated Nadal, one of the two men, to win against Nadal at Roland Garros.
As reported in the Times Of India, Djokovic said, "I wanted to disrupt his rhythm, obviously, but he was ready. He was there; he was prepared. He was playing all the right shots today." Nadal wanted to concentrate on his methods on Roland Garros and hence had skipped the US Open. He was brisk, lively, and swift on Sunday and surprised Djokovic with his tennis quality in the tournament's first two sets. Djokovic claimed that he could've played better alongside Nadal.
Sourced from the NY Times, Rafael, with his head held high, said, "The love story that I have with this city, and with this court, is unforgettable." Nadal later said, "Sorry for today," to Djokovic on the court. He elaborated and said that he wasn't a fan of revenge and accepted when things aren't going the way he'd like. He also added that he had played exceptionally well in Australia, whereas currently, it had turned out to be the opposite. Later in the match, Djokovic unleashed a suspenseful third set and broke Nadal's serve just that time in the entire game. His total momentum had shifted.
The most tour-level match wins in 2020 with 37 victories at hand, which was achieved by the Serb won by only 10 points on serve against Nadal, who played deep and with high tossed balls. In the series of matches, Nadal revolved around a cutting sharpness where Djokovic appeared to be dull and out of sync. At the Phillipe Chartier court, Nadal was majestic by opening the court before shutting out his opponent and raising his points. During their 3rd set, they reached a score of 3-3 after Nadal had to hold his serve in the first two games. He then broke at love in the fifth game. Djokovic was called out by the chair umpire, Damien Dumusois, for a double fault which progressively had resulted in Nadal serving at love during the championship, finishing with an ace and falling to his knees leading to victory, who broke in the 11th game, walking the tightrope.
The Indian Express confirmed that during the awards ceremony, Djokovic said, "Today, you showed why you are the king of clay; I experienced it in my skin." Roger Federer had shortly told on twitter that Nadal, being his greatest rival, had pushed both of them to become better players.
News Sources: NY Times, Times of India, Indian Express.
Edited by Sana Khanam