Undecima(ted) Nadal

(originally posted on rishabhkalia.com on June 11, 2018) 

Rafael Nadal continued his dominant run at the Roland Garros, getting the better of Dominic Thiem in straight sets, 6-4, 6-3, 6-2.

In front of a packed Court Philippe-Chatrier, Dominic Thiem gave it all, trying to match Nadal blow for blow. However it wasn't enough.

If the Austrian needed any evidence of Nadal's prowess as the greatest clay-courter of all time, he got it today in full measure. Rafael Nadal reacts after winning his 11th Roland Garros title.

Full marks to Thiem for intent and aggression, not so much for accuracy. The numbers bring out the story.

His first serve percentage, which had been in the 60s throughout the tournament, was a dismal 45% in the first set. He improved in the next 2 sets, but still ended at 56% for the match.

His serving problems were compounded by a staggering 42 unforced errors, as against 24 for Nadal.

These are still early days for Thiem, and with his talent and promise, he should go on to win quite a few events at the big stage. But today was just not his day.

Playing in his first Grand Slam final, he was overawed by the man who is arguably the most dominant tennis player ever, on a single surface. Probably the most dominant player across sports for a specific surface/format.  Embrace and words of encouragement.

Nadal excelled today in net play, his sojourns to the net giving him more returns than he usually gets. Uncharacteristic to the man who is more comfortable dictating terms from the baseline, Nadal approached the net 18 times in this match, winning 88% of those points.

The heavy forehand returns and the cross-court winners were all in full display. Also on display was the heavy top spin on his returns. They had been remarkably missing during the early part of his quarter-final against Schartzmann, when the cloudy weather had made things tough for Rafa.

THE INVINCIBLE?

The Mallorcan has often left fans and experts in awe with his superhuman performances on clay, ever since his trailblazing debut here as a teenager in 2005, when he went on to win the event.

The ease with which he has triumphed in Paris over the years (a win-loss record of 85-2 since 2005), is enough to delude anyone into thinking that playing here is cakewalk for the Spaniard. Nadal touched upon this aspect after reaching his 11th final at this event, beating Juan Martin del Potro in straight sets.

"Today is a day to rejoice. When you’re in a final like Roland Garros, it’s a great happiness. It may sound easy and logical, but I don’t want it to be. It’s not a routine. I don’t want anyone to think that it’s a routine. It’s a day that I should rejoice about."

The expression says it all!

He is still the wide-eyed child that is as excited about winning here for an 11th time, as he would have been making his debut. The joy, the tears, the sheer euphoria showed this is not routine business. This is special. Every single time.

“It’s amazing now, I can’t describe my feelings.It’s not even a dream to win here 11 times, because its impossible to think of something like this.”

During his speech, he "hoped to see you (the crowd) next year". Maybe we are in for more?