The Spaniard’s 11th Roland Garros title was emotional as the demolition workers prepared to smash up Court Philippe Chatrier but thoughts turned immediately to WimbledonThe tears were new but otherwise things were as they always seem to be in Paris. Rafael Nadal duly collected his 11th French Open title here on Sunday with a brutal, brilliant, resilient and ruthless performance, just as he had done 10 times before. But as Nadal’s uncle, Toni Nadal, said shortly afterwards, “this is not normal”.Less than an hour after the match was completed, demolition workers began to smash up Court Philippe Chatrier, part of the continuing redevelopment that will lead to a roof being in place over the stadium court in two years’ time....
The world No 1’s coach believes the player can now cut loose after showing new maturity to beat Sloane Stephens at the French Open for her first major titlePerhaps Darren Cahill, the coach of Simona Halep, put it best. “She’s been close these last couple of years, she’s worked really hard for it, she’s been kicked in the stomach a couple of times, when she’s had chances. They say the destination is more beautiful if there’s a bit of a bumpy road and you eventually get there, and that’s what happened to her today. It’s a magical moment for her, she did it the hard way against a great opponent and I’m just really proud of her, and really happy for...
Former world No 1’s latest French Open win suggests he is in comparable shape to Alexander Zverev and Grigor DimitrovOn a day of rapidly swirling weather and fortunes, Novak Djokovic emerged from a second perfunctory win against a qualifier to stay in the conversation about who is good enough to stop Rafael Nadal winning his 11th French Open. He could get to the quarter‑finals; once there, he might even find another gear or two, which was his trademark in his pomp.Certainly the former champion is in shape comparable to that of younger contenders in Alexander Zverev, who took five sets to defeat the world No 60 Dusan Lajovic, and Grigor Dimitrov, who survived a tempestuous battle over four hours and 19...