Rafael Nadal is in pole position to finish the year at No. 1 in the Emirates ATP Rankings after winning ‘La Decima’ at Roland Garros. The Spaniard is looking to finish atop the year-end Emirates ATP Rankings for the first time since 2013 and for the fourth time in his career (2008, 2010, 2013). A 2,000 point add from Roland Garros, where he beat Stan Wawrinka in Sunday’s final, takes Nadal to almost 3,000 points ahead of second-placed Federer, who missed the whole clay-court swing. The year-end No. 1 (in bold) was either No. 1 or 2 in the Race after Roland Garros every year from 2004-16, with No. 1 in the Race finishing year-end No. 1 eight times and...
It was 22 minutes of mayhem. The match lasted two hours and five minutes, but the torturous time the ball was in play was just 21 minutes and 59 seconds. It must have felt like an eternity for Stan Wawrinka. Rafael Nadal defeated Wawrinka 6-2, 6-3, 6-1 on Sunday afternoon at Roland Garros. From 2-2 in the first set, it was basically game over. Overall, Nadal won 94 points to 57 (62%). The average point duration for the match was just eight seconds. Eight seconds of side-to-side, lactic acid domination. Eight seconds of Nadal running Wawrinka to whatever arrondissement of Paris he wanted him to go. Wawrinka is so dangerous when he gets to step into a ball, but he...
Twelve years ago, a precocious, long-haired Rafael Nadal stood on Court Philippe Chatrier with his arms wrapped around the Coupe des Mousquetaires for the first time. For more than a decade, the Spaniard re-wrote the history books with a clay-court mastery never before witnessed. On Sunday, Nadal cemented his Roland Garros legacy with an extraordinary, incomprehensible 10th victory at the clay-court Grand Slam. Few superlatives accurately reflect the magnitude of Nadal's achievement and the Spaniard himself struggled to find the right words to describe his emotions. "It's about the work you put in every day," Nadal said to the assembled media following a 6-2, 6-3, 6-1 victory over Stan Wawrinka. "It happened 10 times here already. All the things that...
Although he was disappointed to suffer a one-sided loss to Rafael Nadal in the Roland Garros final, Stan Wawrinka is choosing to focus on the gains he’s made over the past three weeks. Congratulations on a great fortnight in Paris, Stan. Always a champion. #RG17 pic.twitter.com/DMv2V0YEBC — Roland-Garros (@rolandgarros) June 11, 2017 Wawrinka started his clay season with a 2-3 record before coming alive at the right moment, as he so often has throughout his career. He retained his title on home soil in Geneva and then stormed into the semi-finals in Paris without losing a set. On Friday, his fitness was on full display as he fought through World No. 1 Andy Murray in a marathon five-set match. The...
1. Nadal Continues To Make History Rafael Nadal transcended tennis history with his performance at Roland Garros, achieving one of the greatest feats in sports by completing La Decima with a victory over Stan Wawrinka in the final. He picked up his 15th Grand Slam title, surpassing Pete Sampras on the all-time win list and only trailing Federer at 18. Nadal dropped just 35 games, an average of five per match, to finish off one of the most flawless performances at a Grand Slam in the Open Era. It’s unlikely that we’ll see anyone match Nadal’s level of dominance at Roland Garros. He officially joins other legends of the sport in producing jaw-dropping moments that may never be repeated, such...
