Rafael Nadal has won the French Open for a record-setting 14th time, despite having to receive daily painkilling injections in his troublesome left foot. He will now attempt to find a permanent cure for the injury, and he has warned that his record-breaking career could be in jeopardy.
Nadal, now 36 years old, defeated Casper Ruud in the final of Roland Garros on Sunday by scores of 6-3, 6-3, and 6-0. This victory brought Nadal’s total number of Grand Slam titles to 22, and it came exactly 17 years to the day after he won the French Open for the first time as a 19-year-old.
After a persistent ailment to his left foot, which he has dealt with throughout his career, flared up again, he was the oldest winner in Paris, and he had not been sure whether he would even be able to compete.
In the wake of his triumph on Sunday, Rafael Nadal acknowledged that he and his medical staff are about to enter a potentially pivotal week in their careers.
“It should be evident that with the cards that have been dealt to me, I am unable to continue playing, and I have no desire to do so. Nadal said that he will continue his efforts to “attempt to find a solution and an improvement for what’s occurring with the foot.”
According to Nadal, the only way he could have made it through the French Open was by having anesthesiologist inject numbing medication into the nerves in his foot.
Now, in an effort to destroy the nerves, his medical staff would use a method that he referred to as “radio frequency injections.”
“If it works, I keep going. Whether not, it will be a different issue, and I will have to ask myself if I am prepared to have major surgery, which may not ensure that I will be able to compete and may cause me to miss a significant amount of time.
In light of the fact that Wimbledon will begin under only three weeks, Nadal is in a scheduling crunch.
2008 and 2010 were the years when he won the All England Club championship. Should he be victorious once again, he would have completed three of the four events necessary to win the men’s calendar Grand Slam for the first time since 1969.
I am a huge fan of Wimbledon. If you ask me whether or not I will be at Wimbledon, I won’t be able to give you a definitive answer. “Let’s see how effective the therapy is,” he said.
“If I am able to play with anti-inflammatory medications, then sure; but if you want me to play with anaesthetic injections, then no.” I don’t ever want to put myself in that kind of predicament again.”
After dominating his opponent for two hours and eighteen minutes on Sunday, Nadal improved his record in the event to 112 victories and only three defeats.
Ruud said that the most important thing was to offer congratulations to Rafa.
‘True champion’
“You are a genuine champion. Since this is the first time we have met, I now understand what it’s like to be on the receiving end of someone’s aggression. There will be a great deal more of them.
“Not only have you welcomed me into your school with open arms, but you are a genuine source of motivation for me. Everyone here is rooting for you to keep going for quite some more time.
Nadal, who had never been defeated in any of his previous 13 finals in Paris and was competing in his 30th Grand Slam championship match, got off to a strong start against Ruud, who was the first Norwegian man to compete in a championship match at one of the majors. Nadal won the match in straight sets.
He broke to go up 2-0, and despite the fact that he promptly gave up the break by committing two double faults, which are out of character for him, he was swiftly able to regain the lead and go up 3-1.
The Spaniard won the first match in 49 minutes against his opponent, who was 23 years old and had trained at his school in Manacor since 2018.
Ruud, who is ranked eighth in the world and has 66 victories on clay since the beginning of 2020, was under attack once more in the second set and had to fend off three break points in the opening game. Ruud is the player who has been in the best form on clay since the beginning of 2020.
37 winners
When he broke for 3-1 and Nadal committed a double fault for the second time, there was a brief moment of optimism for the other player. Nevertheless, Nadal stormed back with a double break to bring the score to 4-3.
Even though Ruud was able to preserve three set chances in the ninth game, Nadal was able to take a two-set lead when Ruud committed his first double fault of the championship match.
On the eve of the championship match, Rafael Nadal had said that he would prefer to forfeit the event in order to have a new foot.
However, he did not need to hit top gear because he was in complete control against Ruud. He raced away to win the title with three breaks in a third set that was over in thirty minutes. Ruud did not have a chance.
Nadal clinched the victory with a backhand down the line, which was his 37th successful shot of the championship match.
First, on Sunday morning, Coco Gauff and her American partner Jessica Pegula were defeated by Caroline Garcia and Kristina Mladenovic in the women’s doubles final of the French Open. It was Gauff’s second heartbreaking loss in a final at the French Open.
The French duo prevailed in three sets by scores of 2-6, 6-3, and 6-2 to add the 2022 Roland Garros championship to their 2016 victory.
Gauff, who was only 18 years old at the time, had been defeated by Iga Swiatek of Poland in the singles final at Roland Garros on Saturday. The match was decided in straight sets.
Gauff addressed the fans and complimented the environment, saying that he hoped they will soon be able to celebrate a victory.
It wasn’t until the band started playing that I realised I was at an American football game.
