Tennis:Rafael Nadal won his second consecutive French Open crown when he defeated world number one Roger Federer 1-6 6-1 6-4 7-6 in today's final in Paris.
The Spaniard extended his Roland Garros record to 14-0 and his
winning streak on clay to 60 matches.
The result left the Swiss one match short of becoming the
first man since Rod Laver in 1969 to hold all four grand slam
titles at once.
"The match has been extremely tough," said Nadal. "Roger
played much better at the beginning, then I was much better in the
second. After this, the match was more balanced.
"It's incredible. I think I prefer this year's title," added
Nadal, who had beaten Argentine Mariano Puerta in last year's
final.
The Swiss saved two break points in the opening game of the
match before surging to a 5-0 lead in breathtaking style as his
opponent barely managed to string together any winners.
Appearing to suffer from nerves, Nadal failed to convert any
of the five break points he earned during the set.
But as Nadal stepped up a gear in the second, Federer simply
faded away and produced an uncharacteristic 16 unforced errors
during the 32-minute set.
The Spaniard broke Federer in the second game with one of his
trademark backhand crosscourt passing shots.
At 3-0, Nadal called the trainer to treat blisters on his
feet but that did not stop him from racing to a 4-1 lead. Federer
dropped his serve again in the sixth game before Nadal served out
for the set.
Struggling to emerge from a slump, Federer pushed Nadal hard
in the fourth game of the third set. But the Mallorcan survived
unscathed after saving four break points.
To compound Federer's frustration, he dropped his serve in
the following game with a netted forehand to give Nadal a 3-2
advantage.
The 20-year-old Spaniard held serve to wrap up the 55-minute
set.
Nadal again broke in the first game of the fourth set and
held on to the advantage till he stepped behind the baseline to
serve for the match.
Federer finally stirred into action and needed only one break
point to level at 5-5. But his relief was short-lived as Nadal won
the tiebreak 7-4 and the match after three hours and two minutes.
"He played better. He deserves this win because he played
better today," said Federer. "I was close this year. It's a pity
but I will come back next year."