The King of Clay Rafa Nadal thrashed Casper Ruud 6-3, 6-3. 6-0 to win his record 14th French Open title and became the oldest player (36 years) to win the French Open title.
Ruud has trained in Rafa Nadal's academy and also idolizes him from a young age. He was on fire and showed some moments of brilliance, but Rafa as usual proved to be just too good.
It is Nadal's 22nd Grand Slam title and 14th French Open trophy.
The match lasted for two hours and 18 minutes, and that was all it took for Nadal to beat Ruud.
Here are the Highlights:
It is worth noting that Nadal did not face Ruud in the tournament before, but has practised with him several times.
Here is a list of records that Nadal made after winning vs Ruud
- He broke the record of late Andres Gimenoto to be the oldest Roland Garros men’s singles champion in history. Andres created the record at an age of 34 years in 1972.
- He won the French Open and Australian Open in the same year for the first time.
- He swept the French Open trophy for the 14th time, and it is his record-extending 22nd Grand Slam title.
- He equals his lowest ranking as a Grand Slam champion. He was also No. 5 at the French Open 2005 and the Australian Open 2022.
Nadal's road to French 2022 victory:
Final Opponent: Casper Ruud
Semifinal Opponent: Alexander Zverev
Quarterfinal Opponent: Novak Djokovic
Round 4 Opponent: Felix Aliassime
Round 3 Opponent: Botic Zandshulp
Round 2 Opponent: Corentin Moutet
Round 1 Opponent: Jordan Thompson