Rafael Nadal won his 11th French Open title at this year’s Roland Garros tournament by beating Dominic Thiem in straight sets.
The 32-year-old world No. 1 won 6-4 6-3 6-2 to earn his 17th Grand Slam, three adrift of Roger Federer’s all-time men’s record.
Rafael Nadal edged an intense opening set, tightening his grip in the second.
Despite having cramp in the third the Spaniard increased the tempo further, beating the Austrian in his first major final when the 24-year-old returned long.
After the match, Rafael Nadal said: “It’s a dream to win 11 times.
“It was important to play the way I did. It was a tough moment when I got cramp. He is a player who pushes you to the limit.”
The victory means the past six Grand Slam titles have been won by either Rafael Nadal or Roger Federer with the next generation of players finding it hard to break the veterans’ stranglehold on the game.
Rafael Nadal is the only second player in history to win the same Grand Slam on 11 occasions after Margaret Court, who won 11 Australian Open titles between 1960 and 1973.
Simona Halep, the current world No 1, finally won her first Grand Slam title with a gutsy comeback victory over American 10th seed Sloane Stephens in this year’s French Open final.
The 26-year-old had lost in two previous French Open finals – to Maria Sharapova in 2014 and Jelena Ostapenko in 2017 – and against Caroline Wozniacki in this year’s Australian Open showpiece.
Simona Halep, went a set and a break down at Roland Garros.
However, the Romanian battled back to take a see-saw second set against the US Open champion.
Simona Halep then raced away with the third to win 3-6 6-4 6-1.
She said in the build-up to this match that she felt relaxed and would not be fazed by the pressure of winning her first Slam.
After the match, Simona Halep said: “I did everything I could. It is amazing what is happening now.
“I have been dreaming for this moment since I started playing tennis.”
Simona Halep clinched victory with her first match point, Stephens unable to return a powerful first serve.
The top seed dropped her racquet in celebration, covering her face with both hands before Sloane Stephens walked around the net to warmly hug the champion.
Given a standing ovation by the Court Philippe Chatrier crowd, a tearful Simona Halep climbed into the stand behind the baseline to celebrate with her family and coaching team.
This website has updated its privacy policy in compliance with EU GDPR 2016/679. Please read this to review the updates about which personal data we collect on our site. By continuing to use this site, you are agreeing to our updated policy. AcceptRejectRead More
Privacy & Cookies Policy
Privacy Overview
This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience.
Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. This category only includes cookies that ensures basic functionalities and security features of the website. These cookies do not store any personal information.
Any cookies that may not be particularly necessary for the website to function and is used specifically to collect user personal data via analytics, ads, other embedded contents are termed as non-necessary cookies. It is mandatory to procure user consent prior to running these cookies on your website.
