By: Mohit Singhal
French Open 2022: Champion of the red-clay soil, Rafael Nadal adds one more flower to his bucket, clinching the French Open title for the record 14th time by beating the 23-year-old Norwegian star Casper Ruud in the straight sets of 6-3, 6-3, 6-0 to stem his dominance in the Grand Slam finals.
The 36-year-old Spaniard became the oldest ever to secure the French open going past his nation counterpart Andres Gimeno’s feat of securing the clay-court tournament at 34 years of agein 1972.
This title will be very much more special to him considering he suffered a foot injury little more than 3 weeks ago which forced him to leave out from the Italian Open in Rome.
The game that saw only the storm from one end lasted for 2 hours and 18 minutes after which emotions floured throughout the Rafa fans around the world. 8th seed Casper Ruud didn’t stand a chance against his “idol” but in the process became the first-ever Norwegian to represent the country in any Grand Slam final.
Nadal in the appreciation of his academy’s alumni said, “It’s been a pleasure to play the final with you, Congratulations on these two weeks. I’m very happy for you, your team and your family. Wish you all the luck for the future.”
Casper Ruud in his statement applauding the veteran said, “You are a true champion, This is the first time I faced you so now I know what it’s like to be the victim!”
22 times Grand Slam winner in the process went on to increase his unbelievable numbers in the tournament with 112 wins and mere 3 losses overall thus giving bold statement of his authority over the court.
He also extended his dream run of acquiring the major titles with Australian Open and now the red clay triumph in a single year.
