Roland Garros shaped the legend of Rafael Nadal, says the French Open tournament director, who is keeping his fingers crossed for the Spaniard’s fitness » FirstSportz

Currently ranked 5th in the world, Rafael Nadal is the most successful Grand Slam singles champion with 21 titles. With his victory at Australian Open 2022Nadal became just the second man to win all 4 Majors twice as he took the lead in the race for the most Majors for the first time in his illustrious career.

While it was only his second win in Australia, the Spaniard has been topping the numbers at the French Open. With 2 titles at Wimbledon and 4 at the US Open, Rafa has won the remaining 13 Grand Slam titles at the French Open, one more than double the runner-up’s titles Bjorn Borg (6 French Open titles) (France’s Max Decugis won 8 French Open titles before the Open Era).

However, he only played two clay court events that year due to a stress fracture in his rib, the 2022 Madrid Champions and the 2022 Rome Champions Failing to reach the semifinals in both events will see him reach the Roland Garros without a title for the first time. His departure in Rome was worrying as he was almost in tears and also had difficulty moving.

“I followed what Rafa experienced in Rome. And he knows himself better than anyone. It’s an injury he’s been living with for years. Of course he’s worried at first because we know how important it is for him to come to Roland-Garros and it probably shaped all of that, all of his legend in a way.

“So we follow him… I’d say cautiously, but there’s nothing we can do. Of course we all keep our fingers crossed to get the best players in the draw. So what would it mean if he ended up not taking part in the tournament? Obviously he would be a failure. called Amelie MauresmoTournament director of the French Open, as reported by Eurosport.

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Rafael Nadal’s record at the French Open

Rafa has an impeccable record at the French Open, having gone unbeaten for 4 years at the Major before losing for the first time in 2009. The dominance was not just limited to the major but throughout the golden swing, leading to his being named the “King of Clay” over the years as 62 of his 91 career titles have come on clay.

Nadal went undefeated at the French Open from 2005 to 2008 before losing his first ever match in the 4th round of the French Open French Open 2009 to Robin Soderling. After losing in 2009, he won 5 consecutive titles before his winning streak came to an end Novak Djokovic in the quarterfinals of French Open 2015. In the 2016 edition, Nadal suffered a free kick before his match in the 3rd round due to an injury. This was the first time he had not won the title in consecutive years since his debut at the Major.

He came back strong the next year as he again won four straight titles from 2017-2020 before Djokovic defeated the Spaniard in a thrilling semi-final French Open 2021. Losing to Djokovic last year was only Nadal’s third loss at the French Open while he had 105 wins to his name at the Grand Slam.

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