Rafael Nadal apparently decided that drama in the fourth round, quarterfinals, and semis was enough.
Channeling his typically dominant self in French Open finals, Nadal made Sunday’s final nothing more than a formality. It might as well have been a coronation rather than a tennis match. Having navigated his way through a brutal top half of the draw, the 36-year-old crushed heavy underdog Casper Ruud 6-3, 6-3, 6-0 for his 14th title at Roland Garros and his 22nd Grand Slam triumph overall.
That’s not to say it was an entirely stress-free day for Nadal supporters. First they desperately wanted to see his chronic foot injury survive one last match in Paris. Once that objective was ticked off (Nadal showed no signs of any physical struggles over the course of two hours and 18 minutes), perhaps the most tense moments of the afternoon came during the trophy ceremony. Would the King of Clay say anything about his immediate and/or long-term future? Could this even be the end?
Another sigh of relief could be breathed when Nadal capped off his winner’s speech by saying, “I don’t know what can happen in the future, but I am going to keep fighting to try to keep going.”
Sunday’s contest was not even close to a fair fight. Nadal was playing in his 30th slam final–14th at Roland Garros alone. Ruud, 13 years his opponent’s junior at 23, was playing in his first major final. In fact, the Norwegian had never even been to a quarterfinal prior to this fortnight. Ruud had found some brief success by breaking back early in the first set and then going ahead 3-1 in the second, but the few times he gained any kind of momentum it evaporated quickly.
Once the world No. 8 gave back his break lead in set two, it was all over. From 1-3 down, Nadal reeled off the last 11 games of the match. He lost only eight points in the entire third set.
“For me, (to) have this trophy next to me again means everything,” Nadal assured. “(There) have been emotional victories, without a doubt; unexpected in some way. Yeah, (I’m) very happy. [It has] been a great two weeks. Since the beginning (I was) improving every day, finishing playing a good final.”
The world No. 5 had to be good throughout the event–especially in a taxing second week. He needed five sets to get past Felix Auger-Aliassime in the last 16, edged top seed Novak Djokovic in a four-set quarterfinal thriller, and then battled Alexander Zverev for three hours 13 minutes without even completing two sets (Zverev was forced to retire because of a nasty ankle injury).
In the end, Nadal finally enjoyed a routine day at his office that is Court Philppe-Chatrier.
“I said before the match that I guess [facing Nadal at Roland Garros] is (the toughest challenge in tennis),” Ruud commented. “Now I think I know it is…. His numbers speak for themselves. He has never lost a final here, and there is a reason why. I guess like I said in the speech, I’m just another one of the victims that he has destroyed on this court in the final.
“It was the first time I have experienced this situation and played a Grand Slam final. I don’t think it really got to me until I stepped on court today and saw the full stadium and felt the atmosphere in the crowd.
“I wish I could [have made] the match closer and all these things, but at the end of the day I can hopefully one day tell my grandkids that I played Rafa on Chatrier in the final, and they will probably say, ‘Wow, did you?’ I will say, ‘Yes.’ I’m probably going to enjoy this moment for a long time.”
In a French Open final against Rafael Nadal, trying to enjoy it is all you can do. Because winning it is out of the question.
The King of Clay
It’s sad when people that are no good at anything have to use other’s achievements as a weapon against others.
It’s been a rough tournament for Rafa. Glad the final was a little more fun for him. Really hope he finds a “small solution” for his foot. I know he’ll try his best. He always does! And his best is pretty darn good! He took out *four* top ten players in his last 4 matches! Amazing. (Well, I guess Zverev took himself out, instead of “putting himself in there” as he usually does.)
A rough tournament? The guy has had more favors the past 6 months than most people get in a life time.
Wake up you delusional fools.
Amazing achievement. Really the treatment is going to try next week gives him some pain relief. At end of the day we all want him to win but not at the expense of the health and happiness
Can we stop calling rafa the king of clay ? He is the king period.
He is a double career grand slam holder and has highest slams too. He has gone way beyond being called king of clay. Those credentials on clay were never in doubt irrespective of what jealous morons like mourtaglou or Wilander say with their gutter mouths.
P.mourtaglou is really annoying.. He is nole worshipper.. Maintains double standard and makes salty comments about Rafa always..
I don’t have an issue with anyone if they worship Novak, but they can do that without diminishing Rafa or his achievements! Whenever they disparage Rafa like that, it just seems to me like Novak then is not good enough to stand on his own.
I am so proud of Rafa! He keeps things simple and hence the reason he is so successful. It’s clear there is a lot of envy but Rafa LOVES tennis and he enjoys competing, and bcoz of that he is committed to the sport and has a great philosophy about winning. He is not afraid to lose, but if you are to beat him he does not make it easy for ANY competitor. He will make you suffer…….simple……i c nothing wrong with that, lol!!!
I hope that his foot treatment is successful, and even if it’s not to the point where he won’t be able to play anymore, I’ll be disappointed but it will be ok. Rafa is still young and has his whole life ahead of him. He did great in setting up his academy and it’s wildly successful. He can give some of his time there and I am sure he and his students will like that very much. Good luck Rafa, and you will always be my #1. VAMOS, VAMOS, VAMOS!!!
agreed
On VB they had information about the procedure they will do on Rafa’s foot.
It is called radio frequency ablation. Radio waves will be sent through a hollow needle inserted into the nerves in his left foot that are causing the pain.
Hi to all rafafans here, and of course all to other tennisfans! And great to see that the troll infestation seems to be under control atm!
I have to say that I am a bit speechless when I look at the pictures of Rafa holding the trophy again. When I saw his absolutely brutal RG draw after Rafa limped out of Rome, while Novak started to rediscover his usual confidence, I thought that hell needed to freeze over before Rafa had a chance to bite that FO trophy again! Well, maybe hell did freeze over – at least a little bit! I thought that nothing could top the utterly surprizing second AO title, but I was wrong! Strange as it might sound, the 14th FO is even more surprizing. We all know that Rafa is the king of clay, and a loss in Paris would not have changed this assessment one iota since it could have been easily explained by Rafa’s numerous ailments and his advanced age. But this year’s win showed why right now Rafa is the king of everything!
I also agree with those who said that the quarterfinal against Djokovic was one of the most important tennis matches of the last years. Many have claimed that at the AO Rafa got lucky because he didn’t have to face Novax who had taken himself out of the competition. And while playing and winning against Rafa at the FO is an entirely different challenge, Novak was one of only two players who had done just that, and he had regained his strength while Rafa’s health had worsened again after the AO. If Novak had won, he would have overcome Rafa three times at RG. And if he had won his third FO trophy, he would have wone each slam at least three times – and neither Rafa nor Roger would have had a chance to replicate that feat, since their careers are clearly winding down! But the same is of course true for Novak! When he lost that quarterfinal against Rafa, he might also have lost his best chance of winning a third FO title. But while Rafa’s public mantra is always that he lives in the moment and just tries to win one match at a time, this season he also seems to be very aware that each match could be his last. This thought seems to propel him to new heights. And that’s why this season which is so much dominated by worries about Rafa’s aging body, could well become one of his best seasons!
Thankfully, the outcome of tennis matches are not determined by predictions of tennis writers and experts. If that was the case, Rafa would still be titleless in 2022.
Rafa just lets his racquet do the talking.
Nadline, yes, Rafa talked loud and clear clear through his racquet, and he played a few superb matches. But he was also very eloquent about his ongoing health problems! Instead of biting that trophy for a record breaking 14th time, he could well have limped out of the stadium like in IW or very recently in Rome! But atm this imminent danger seems to strengthen his mental resolve.
And we also learned that Rafa can win RG even when one of his feet is asleep 😉
But frankly, this made Zverev’s unlucky exit even more frightening! Couldn’t such an accident easily happen to someone whose foot and part of his leg has been “put to sleep”???
As to Zverev – like most of us here I am not a big fan of him for many reasons. But he was playing really well, and I feel sorry for him – especially since his injury will not go away quickly. His season may well be ruined. He can forget about Wimby and even the USO might be unrealistic. At the begin of the 2022 season he seemed to be the man to beat and the future No 1. And now everything went horribly wrong…
littlefoot,
I don’t like Zverev either. For reasons that I have stated. But it was terrible to see him take that bad fall. I don’t want to see anyone get hurt like that. I heard that he tore two ligaments in his foot. This has derailed his quest to win a slam. But I do wish him a speedy recovery.
I don’t understand how Rafa could play with a numb foot. That seems very risky. But he really wanted one more shot at RG. I just hope that this new treatment will give him some relief.
It was not numbing the foot but blocking the pain of the nerve ..supposedly sensory nerve and not motor nerve of foot. .
No one can stand or play numbing the whole foot ,u need sensations. The pain was blocked thats it..2 injections on 2 nerves before every match .
But this had risk of other injury like ankle etc .rafa just took a big chance under trusted advise of his doctor. Thank God he came away as winner without any other injury ..it was a huge gamble that paid off .
More the reason I feel he should win wimby. This is his last year to take slams. The body will not support any longer. Make the most of what u can .he has so much momentum now , i feel he can even win wimby as he can play Novak only in the final ..
This year will be big and the last gs winning for rafa..rake up as much asu can ..one or maybe both left ..atleast 1:-)
I know i said long back he will surely reach 22..I’m just being greedy now for 23 as it’s wimby and it has eluded him for 12 years. .
NNY, yes, putting the nerv of his troublesome foot “to sleep” enabled Rafa to play his best tennis when it was needed and to win his favorite tournament. But it was a risk, as Rafa has said himself. He also said that it was not an option for upcoming tournaments.
He also said that he was well aware that what happened to Zverev could well have happened to himself as well. Rafa has had many career threatening injuries after all.
I watched his CNN interview with Amanpour yesterday and he limped his way to the chair. Amanpour also mentioned it during the interview. When I heard what he had to do to take part in the French I said to myself this is very risky and also not sustainable. Good thing he said he won’t do it again, so if this new treatment doesn’t work then Wimby is a no go. So Rafa’s season for the remainder of the year is still up in the air. I had said from the beginning that I didn’t care that much for another FO, was rooting for Wimby instead, but I’m glad he won it instead of Novak considering the historical implications. However, if he is able to take part in Wimby, as much as Id like him to win, I am going to be cautiously optimistic bcoz of his heath issues obviously.
Teenager, 36-year-old…old Chatrier, new Chatrier…day session, night session…Babolat balls, Wilson balls…June, October…roof open, roof closed…fully fit, foot injury.
Everything changes. Except the outcome at #RolandGarros.
Haha well said ! I hope his foot heals now, numbing the foot and wiing RG beating top4 players enroute, I think we are talking about once in a lifetime player in any individual sport. Rafa has just taken it another level post 2017.
Very true. Certainly once in MY lifetime. But while Rafa shines in an individual sport, he is, by nature and nurture, a team player, always thinking of the greater good. Speaking of which, one of the things I really admire about Rafa is that he’s never fired/replaced any of his beloved team. That’s got to be unique among tennis players, at least in the modern era.
“I played Rafa at Chatrier”……yes, that is something great to tell your grandkids. Vamos Rafa, now and forever!
The idolatry in this forum is nauseating. Maybe one day you people will get your own lives and self-belief rather than living your dreams through others!
😆😆😆, well said! Our dear anonymous poster has written more comments than most of us 😉
🌞🌞🌞🐕🐕🐕🐕
Pity there’s not a raving lunatic emoji.
Even an emoji signifying a deeply dislikable person would do…
Vamos Rafa!!! Rafa plays for the love of competing and the rest takes care of itself. I remember when Rafa had nine French Open titles and I thought optimistically he could get to 13 and now he has 14. Simply peerless.
Hi Hawkeye, nice to see you 😀 I hope everything is fine for you!
I still remember our discussions about Rafa’s anxiety attacks in 2015 and 2016 when his physical problems had temporarily shattered his self confidence. This was seven years ago 🙄… gasp… Who would have thunk that in 2022 rafafans all over the world would celebrate his 22nd slam trophy, and that he would be the leader in the GOAT race!
Whatever comes next – it’s all good! For Rafa it has been mind over matter in the last few years, and his mind is the clear winner.
Hi Hawkeye, nice to see you! I hope you are well!
I still remember our conversations about Rafa’s anxiety attacks in 2015/16, when his injuries had temporarily shattered one of his greatest assets – his self confidence. At the time he had won 14 slam trophies overall. Now he has 14 wins just at RG! Who would have thunk that in 2022 rafafans all over the world would celebrate the win of his 22nd slam trophy! A truly incredible journey on a roller coaster! And the narrative of the GOAT race has more twists and turns than the plot of a novel.
I think rafa will have a more realistic shot at USO compared to wimbledon.
He should be more focussed there imho.
Vamos Rafa!
All 4 Vrael…let’s do it and say sayonara..
Vrael, I agree! We cannot predict the future, but I really don’t think that Rafa has a realistic chance to win another Wimby trophy, although he came close in 2018, when he played excellent grass court tennis. If his health is good enough he will probably participate. He loves Wimby and he could improve his ranking. From now on he has no points to defend.
But there is no reason why a 5th USO title shouldn’t be possible if he is fit enough for playing on a high level. Rafa’s hardcourt performances have been almost flawless this year. He defeated many excellent hardcourt players and only a cracked rip stopped him in the final of IW. Rafa also has had a lot of success at the USO since 2010, when he won the title for the first time. A healthy Rafa is always a contender at the USO.
if he’s healthy he does. The Wimbledon field this year is terrible. Who is good on grass right now other than Djokovic?
Ricky, maybe Cilic could go far at Wimby – if he preserves his current good form. But none of the younger guns has mastered grass, yet. It’s hit and miss with many of them. And with the absence of Medvedev, Zverev and possibly Rafa – and without Fed – this year’s Wimby has a terrible field! Djokovic will be the big favorite.
Cilic could WIN Wimbledon with the right draw
Ricky, yes, a healthy Cilic could definitely win Wimby. He is one of few current players who are a real threat on grass. He has been flying under the radar until his run into the RG semis, and I have to say that I didn’t pay a lot of attention because I feel quite indifferent towards him. But he could be important in the next few weeks . Let’s see how he will acquit himself in Queens…
needs to minimize his hard-court schedule, however
Hi Vreal, Littlefoot and Hawkeye!!!! Good to see you guys back on “tour”, lol!!!!!
Yes, I am done second guessing Rafa when it comes to slams but like I said above, I’ll remain cautiously optimistic of his chances at Wimby. I just hope if he plays there (and not win) that it does not jeopardise his chances at the USO. But for me another Wimby would be absolutely sensational!!!
Hi, Monalisa, of course we have to be here for a little celebration! Who knows how often we can do this in the future? After 2021 it is a small wonder that we can even do this!
he has a better chance at Wimby than US
Absolutely great interview by rafa .he explains everything including the treatment. He is positive the radio frequency treatment will work..if it works and he plays wimby ,more salt coming djokovic fans way :-). They have gone crazy af.
https://mobile.twitter.com/gigicat7_/status/1534186416724492288
This twitter handle is hilarious!!! PPl r even jealous of Rafa and Roger’s friendship, lol!!!
https://mobile.twitter.com/RaphaelDabadie/status/1534179078349242370
Rafa in Barcelona today to try new treatment
Hi mona and sanju
The radio frequency ablation procedure will permanently burn away the nerve transmitting the pain in rafa’s foot. It’s not the ideal solution as it does not solve the underlying problem caused by the syndrome (no blood supply to the part of his foot bone) and i feel he will undergo surgery after he retires for a better solution.
I would also rather have rafa win Wimbledon than USO and rafa can surprise for sure. Let’s see 🙂
Sorry here is the interview link…
https://www.atptour.com/en/news/nadal-brutal-roland-garros-post-mortem
Great interview. He sounds so level headed! Keep on keeping on, Rafa!!
I just want Rafa to be happy! I’ll be very happy if he can continue playing tennis for a few more years. I’ll be thrilled with more wins at whatever level. I’d be delighted if he took up doubles as long as I could watch! (Not gonna happen, I know). It’s just that I don’t feel that he *needs* to achieve more in the way of big wins or records. He’s done that. He’s recognized everywhere as one of the best sportsmen of all time, as well as being a great person. Well, everywhere except on the molefarm and who cares about that collection of crazies? There’s always people who insist that black is white, up is down, the earth is flat and no one’s ever been to the moon.
They’re Fed haters and now Rafa haters. I think most Rafa fans just concentrate on Rafa and not so bothered with other players, including Fed and Djoko, though we can acknowledge all the greatness of the big three.
Lucky, yes! But it’s the incessant degrading of Rafa in order to elevate Novak, and now to a lesser extent Roger, that is nauseating! I remember a few years back it used to be Roger fans, when Roger had the most GSs, who were the mighty pests, but at least they were a bit sane!! Novak fans r just completely bonkers!!!!
I’m curious to hear from Ricky and Cheryl..who is the goat for now if there is one?
Rafa has the most slams, for now. The GOAT is anyone you want to name. At least I am not aware of any person, committee or body that has been empowered with designating a GOAT. Or three GOATS, which is my own choice. You can stay with Rod Laver, pick Pete Sampras or even Andre Agassi and probably make a pretty good case.
wouldnt be easy to make a case for those guys….
Personally I don’t contemplate the GOAT question anymore. There are too many variables which are totally subjective. We can’t even agree which stats should be included. And what about things like Rafa’s genetic foot defect, which is something he had to deal with from the very beginnings of his career? Most experts predicted that Rafa would burn out soon. Well, at 36 he is still there winning slams, and sometime after Wimby he will be the top ranked player again – at least for a while. Shouldn’t that influence the GOAT question, too? I am sure that Novak’s and Roger’s fans can come up with similar arguments and unique achievements which support the claim that their favorite player must be the true GOAT.
I came to the conclusion that the GOAT is a fantastic beast which can only be found in the wizard world of J.K. Rowling.
That said, there are many records out there which can be broken. The career slam count is one of them, and it might be the most important record. There is nothing subjective about that number, and in the last 25 years only 4 players have been serious contenders: Sampras, Fed, Novak and Rafa. He is the current record holder, while Novak hasn’t held that record, yet. But if he stays healthy – and if he avoids to get disqualified or deported – he has a decent chance to become the leader within the next few years.
While I don’t discuss the GOAT question any more, I enjoy following the slam race.
https://www.msn.com/en-gb/sport/cycling/french-cyclists-question-ethics-of-rafael-nadal-s-roland-garros-injection-use/ar-AAYdVOi?bk=1&bk=1&ocid=msedgntp&cvid=77da672566c1467ca098c7a6c3707f9b
Thoughts?
Is Al one of Anon/ Guest’s identities?
He has so many!
First off, and IMHO, the cyclist can’t compare what Rafa did to what occurred in cycling. Numbing ure foot can’t possibly help improve ure performance bcoz you run the risk of injuring your ankle and so Rafa while competing has to remain cautions of this. Secondly, if there was any performance enhancing element in the injection, how do u explain the dips in Rafa’s performance in his matches. He even complained about how tired he got in the second set against Novak hence the reason he lost both breaks. Thirdly, tennis players compete routinely with injuries and many use painkillers and anti-inflammatories to help them compete. Yes, using an injection is unusual but Rafa’s situation is unusual. Fourthly, Rafa’s team would have ensured that the injection would not contain any substances that are banned before he took it into his body while competing. Y do ppl try to create sensationalism for no reason at all? And who are those cyclists ANYWAY? Never heard of them!!!
They are attention seekers!
If injections are not allowed, Rafa and his team would have been stopped from doing so in the first place! And, players have to do doping tests after their matches.
Pain killing injections are allowed since long time ago. I believe in 2006 Rafa had pain killing jab too for his FO that year, before the final if I’m not wrong.
It’s not performance enhancing, because after injection, Rafa’s level of play = a normal Rafa without foot issue flaring up; not anything above a normal Rafa!
Are u sure his performance wasnt even slightly better than usual? Evidence? This equal sign you use . Very scientific yet subjective at the same time.
I just came across the article , thought it was worth discussing as it was a different angle .Maybe not. I havent heard of these cyclists either.Maybe the whole thing in cycling is a remnant of the Lance Armstrong fiasco.
Oh come on, you think FAA would be able to go five sets with Rafa then? What have FAA done on clay so far??
This is only one example.
If he (FAA) had more support from Toni,it’s very possible even back then
？？
Do you understand what I’m saying?
I said, if Rafa’s injections were performance enhancing, you think FAA could go five sets against that version of Rafa? (Given how relatively poor FAA’s results on clay were, didn’t even get past the QF stage in any clay events he played this year).
A normal Rafa without foot issue flaring up would dispose of his opponents in three or four sets; he rarely needs to go five sets on clay against anyone.
You should have brought this up when Novak used heavy pain killers and anti inflammatories to win ao 2021…
I didn’t bring it up the cyclists did.
LS, I misunderstood I thought your ‘then’ meant back in 2006- hypothetically FAA being coached by Toni.
But I still cant see much objectivity there ,these things are very difficult to quantify esp when you factor in the 36 year old Nadal – always the chance he would be taken to five anyway – its very hard to gauge when he wasnt either injured or lacking in confidence that contributed to his not doing as well. Performance enhancing? Maybe, for a someone his age to get through so many tough long matches – has he ever done that?
Anyway ,surely its better Rafa is taken to five sets at RG to keep it interesting? I really enjoyed this RG because of the unpredictability.
We are not on the same wavelength, I’m not going to waste time on this anymore, because you’re not being objective.
Go and check what Rafa has achieved at RG all these years, who he has beaten; FAA won’t fit in as the most difficult opponent that a normal Rafa would need five sets to beat him. If the pain reducing injections are performance enhancing, Rafa won’t even need to go the distance to beat FAA.
Go and read what WADA said about Rafa’s pain reducing injections if you have doubts; they’re certainly not performance enhancing, but pain relieving.
I’ll stop here. No more from me on this topic.
Point taken LS.
Pain reducing/performance enhancing, both have the effect of improved performance, who can say which ,maybe both. esp when you factor in all other factors such as age. And a younger opponent coached by an uncle, extra pressure mentally.
Maybe theres a difference between short term injury pain relief and the same for long term congenital stuff which could be construed as performance enhancing? Maybe thats the crux of this. I dont know the answer.
Lucky,
Yes please no more! I beg you not to get caught up in this despicable garbage. I will say one thing for the rabid Novak fans that come here at times and who are on Twitter. At least they are honest about who they are. They worship Novak and despise Rafa. We know where they are coming from.
But the person who posted this shameful article trying to stir up controversy and defame Rafa, is worse. Because he pretends yo be a real tennis fan who wants to have reasonable discussions. But putting up that article trying to say that Rafa somehow had performance enhancing benefit from injections to numb his foot, showed who and what he really is.
Rafa has courageously struggled with this incurable injury throughout his career. He has accepted it and dealt with it. Let me be perfectly clear – the person who posted that article wanted Rafa to have to withdraw from RG. After his second match with Moutet, Rafa said he could not walk. The choice was either withdraw from RG or get injections to numb his foot. He was told that there were very real risks if he went ahead with it. He chose to take the risk. Because he wanted to play. Yes, to the rotten Novak fans, he wanted to play!
Understand that the person who posted that article wanted Rafa to withdraw. That is the rub. He wanted Rafa out so Novak could win RG. He is just ticked off that Rafa found a way to keep playing. So he beat Novak and won RG. Hence the need to generate spurious controversy with this article.
I say we look ahead and hope that this latest treatment will allow Rafa to keep playing. We can rejoice over the amazing year Rafa has had so far. We can be so proud of him for triumphing over adversity. He took a risk because he loves this sport. He wanted the chance to win a RG again.
He is a courageous and brilliant athlete. Let us celebrate his greatness and not let anything get in the way.
For as long as plays, fur as long as we have him on the court thrilling us with the magic of his tennis, we are truly blessed.
Al, you are an intelligent poster – but this is silly! These pain killing injections only raise Rafa’s game because he can play without too much pain. Other than that these specific medications do not influence his overall prowess at all! They neither raise his set of skills nor his endurance or his tennis intelligence. That’s the reason why these specific medications are not banned. And if we have the subjective impression that Rafa now and then played better than ever, we simply see what he is able to do when he is pain free. There are of course other pain medications – like oxycontin – available which might influence the overall level. And that is the reason why these medications are banned.
The question of PEDs and tennis should be taken seriously, and for me no player is above suspicion. I also think that the controls in between tournaments are not frequent enough. But starting this discussion with the painkillers which numbed Rafa’s pesky foot, is silly! And frankly, I cannot see what’s so funny about this article. The cyclists which started this discussions, were dead serious.
Mona,
I saw this post late last night my time. I felt that it was an attempt to instigate Rafa fans. Novak fans just can’t deal with Rafa winning two slams and making more history. I also felt that I could not respond without using inappropriate language.
It’s just sad that anyone would do this. Pathetic, too. Get over it and accept that Rafa has won both AO and RG! Put on your big boy pants and accept it!
Rafa did nothing wrong and any cyclist who would say otherwise has their own agenda.
Luckystar and MonaLisa, please don’t even dignify this foolishness with an intelligent response. The haters are banging their heads on the wall bc of Rafa being the GOAT with 22 grandslams. Please don’t waste your time and intelligence responding to mind-numbing stupidity. They always do this and say and carry this propaganda everytime Rafa wins a slam especially if it’s a non-clay slam. Example Australian open 2009 and 2022, all the 2 wimbledons he won and etc. Let them keep on hating and talking trash. They’ve sed much worse before, remember that useless French minister of health.
Rafa is the undisputed GOAT, period. Let’s enjoy rafa’s French open win which is astonishing and hope and pray that his treatment which he has started is successful so that he plays Wimbledon and Us open. And I believe Rafa has a few more years to play tennis before he calls it quits, maybe 2/3yrs.
On another note, what happened to the greatest wonder in the universe: Alcaraz, I thought he was going to win French open and everything including all slams destroying everybody in his path according to the media. How Rafa has shut everybody up.
Vamos Rafa THE GOAT.
I’d love for Cheryl to write an article on the greatness of Rafa at the French open and in tennis overall. Surely what he accomplished by winning 14 French opens and 22 grandslams deserves a masterpiece of an article by the exquisitely gifted writer-Cheryl. Please, it’s a humble request, we rafans would love it instead of having to read the atrocity that was posted in the few comments above denigrating Rafa and his tennis prowess as usual.
Did anyone hear of those cyclists ? Well there lies the answer..2 minute fame lol
Tsitsipas was asked abt it at Stuttgart n he said he has played a wtf match with pain killing injections
Everyone does it..
These fuck nole tards have forgotten Novak won his entire ao 21 slam with very heavy pain killers and anti inflammatories..
N how dumb can ppl be ..these ppl are talking as rafa divulged his treatment openly.. if he had anything to hide he would not .he was confident it’s perfectly legal n allowed hence he did ..u take what he said n then raise qns..which order degree fools are u..the man was so honest that he even divulged what treatment he will take in future . He has guts ..the ones questioning have achieved nothing in life..n the nole tards will rot in their holes out of jealousy anyway..they can’t digest that since wimby 2021, Novak is seamless n rafa won 2..the fear of rafa ending with highest slams is freaking them out..imagine if Novak does not win wimby n rafa does, these guys will commit suicide ..
Sanju,
I think Happy’s advice is best. We should not dignify this with any response. Novak fans will spin their conspiracy theories because they simply cannot deal with Rafa having 22 slams, halfway to the calendar slam.
Rafa was open and honest about everything. Because there is nothing to hide. But we have read so many lies from Novak fans. What else can they do? This is who they are. That is why this garbage article was posted. It shows you the depths to which they will sink.
We should be focusing on Rafa’s treatment. I hope it is successful and he can play at Wimbledon. That would be the best revenge on the poisonous Novak fans who persist in trashing him.
“For me, Rafael Nadal has achieved the greatest feat in the history of sport. Period. He is above Ali, Pelé or Jordan.”
Guy Forget
“Try to find in a discipline as popular as tennis, not in a sport that has 25 licensees in the world, a champion who is able to win 14 times the toughest tournament on the planet, the most difficult thing that exists,” said Forget. “There are not any. We said when Borg won Roland-Garros six times, it’s monstrous, no one will do better.”
“Sampras has won 14 Grand Slam titles. Nadal has won Roland-Garros 14 times. It’s unimaginable,” he added.
“It doesn’t (just) surprise me, it surprises everyone,” Forget said. “If it had been said a few years ago that someone would win the same Grand Slam tournament 14 times, no one would have believed it. It was impossible to envisage and, the best part, is that it is an ongoing series.”
So French open former director believes Nadal to not just be the GOAT in tennis (and he is, period) but the greatest athlete of all time in all sports. I completely agree. Rafans, luckystar, vamosrafa, Amy, sanju, nny, ramara and all, let’s discuss/debate this, agree and disagree. Any thoughts? This statement by Guy forget has made some haters and nole fans go crazy and I am loving it. Let’s discuss this with some facts and intelligence instead of allowing the haters in the above comments to post some rubbish about Rafa and waste our time responding to such foolishness.
link to the article below:
https://www.sportskeeda.com/tennis/news-rafael-nadal-achieved-greatest-feat-entire-history-sports-ali-pele-jordan-guy-forget?utm_source=www.sportskeeda.com&utm_medium=native&utm_campaign=ShareArticle
Happy, to be honest with you, Guy Forget is not saying anything I don’t already know! We ALL know how incredible Rafa is hence the reason Y we are his fans!
But what’s even more funny is how ppl try to debase Rafa by saying that he is only good on clay and hence a one trick pony! Yet, they’re upset he keeps winning RG and were hoping that Alcaraz, Tsistpas or Nole would win. Nole fans were so SURE that he would win RG this year and potentially knock Rafa off his perch there!! But every time Rafa wins RG they pretend that RG is not real tennis and tennis is hard court and grass, lol!! So I don’t understand what all the fuss is about? If clay court tennis is not tennis then y be so salty?!!!!
Novak himself said this French that RG is the toughest one to sin as it takes physically n mentally the most out of you. Rafa has won this most physical and mentally demanding tournament 14 times and Novak twice. That’s the bitter truth.
Clay is called the surface of truth,hope you all heard that. It is for a reason.
Its certainly the most physical, thats why Rafa won it 14 times.
Mentally is linked but not anywhere near as important on clay as it is , on a sudden death surface like grass.
Rafa one trick pony? When he has 6 HC slams and 2 Wimbledon? One more HC slam and Rafa will tie with Sampras with the same number of HC slams. If I’m not wrong, that will be no.3 on the HC slams won list (1st being Djoko and 2nd Fed).
One more Wimbledon title, and he’ll tie with Boris Becker, and John Mac or Connors?
On top of all those, he’s unprecedentedly dominant on clay, you call that one trick pony?
This nonsense about clay not being difficult actually started with Fed fans as Rafa was able to best him so often on that surface. I used to laugh out loud! When Borg played he was revered gif his skill on the surface, as well as his amazing ability to transition from clay to grass. He won the channel slam three years in a row. At that time clay was revered as the toughest and most demanding of slams. Pete Sampras never won RG thereby denying him the career slam. John McEnroe never won it.
I absolutely believe that not only did Novak fans think he was a sure bet to beat Rafa, but Novak believed it himself. I think he thought he had it in the bag. Rafa missed half the clay season because of the rib injury, lacked the preparation he felt he needed and then there is the foot acting up in Rome. So Novak thought it was a piece of cake. Maybe that is why this loss seemed to sting so much for Novak.
This time Novak fans can’t say – oh Novak didn’t play and that’s why Rafa won. If Novak was there he would have beaten Rafa. But sorry, Novak was there this time and lost! Hello! No excuses this time! So they bring out their conspiracy theories and their lies and dirt.
Well it’s tough luck on Novak fans. Rafa beat him and made more history!
The director and head of wada on record here .suck on this you fucking noletard haters n morons
https://mobile.twitter.com/AmorosCuatro/status/1534873787304493056
https://en.as.com/other_sports/why-has-rafa-nadal-been-accused-of-doping-in-france-n/
The article by wada director
We know all this. As I said, this article was posted to incite Rafa fans. Of course it is bullshit. The crap from Novak fans is all bullshit.
Let them wallow in their hate and misery.
Hello, I just want to give praise, once again, to Don Rafael Nadal Parera for giving us so much joy over the years. I can’t believe that ‘soon’ (I hope not too soon) he will retire, it has been such a privilege to witness.
I will never forget the hype when he was climbing the ranks, with such precocity and furious energy – never seen before in tennis!
His first Wimby going out against Schichaphan, the first time he beat Federer in Miami, back in 2004!
With all the highs and lows – I just couldn’t take the lows , especially those days when Nole was winning everything and Nadal seemed helpless (as everyone else)
I just hope he still has it in him to play another cpl of seasons, every match is literally a legend in the making.
Thank you so much Mr. Nadal!
No complaints when Novak withdrew from the AO. How many Rafa fans cheered ?
The objectivity or lack of it and double standards are nauseating.
That was me
‘He is a courageous and brilliant athlete. Let us celebrate his greatness and not let anything get in the way.
For as long as plays, fur as long as we have him on the court thrilling us with the magic of his tennis, we are t”
Great words . Novak was like that last year when he won three Slams – pity he never got the same accolade. In fact a lot of posters disappeared completely until after the US Open loss.
Come on guys!
Al is just another of Anon ‘s/ Guest’s sock puppets.
Just ignore all posts by him.
Posters can choose to ‘disappear from time to time if they don’t have a great interest in specific matches being played at a given time, rather than hanging around making inciteful and vitriolic comments about players they’re not fans of. All the players deserve respect for their commitment and the joy they’ve given to their fanbase over many years. Thankfully most Rafa fans are tennis lovers at the core and can appreciate the records and achievements of the other players.
“inciteful and vitriolic comments..”
Haha! Is this yet another anon/ guest sock puppet? He just trolls on and on and on with this nonsense
Apologies everyone, my post at 6.47 above was a bit unclear. I was responding to the 9.27 post on 10/06 whick said that posters had ‘disappeared’ until after the US Open, ie. when the Grand Slam wasn’t achieved, thereby implying, perhaps, that we came back then to pass comment, negatively, on that.
Point taken, and my memory not perfect but there were a few posts after the US final from certain posters who hadnt been seen for months.
And I must admit, I posted that article just because I thought it was ridiculous and no-one would take it seriously. We all know what painkillers are for and are used in tennis and other sports.
From the response it really does highlight some people have no sense of humour or fun in all of this. Its quite scary how seriously obsessed they are !
Al, what is so funny about doping alegations?? The two French cyclists were dead serious! You have a very strange sense of humor. I would have respected your contribution much more if you had said that you wanted to discuss this subject and if you had offered your opinion. I had contemplated myself to discuss it here. But your claim that you did it for laughs is ridiculous!
Are you identical with Big Al btw?
Doping allegations? But he only took painkillers,didn’t he? Which are legal,other tennis players have done it.Thats what’s ridiculous plus the fact that I can’t see anyone being stripped of their titles like Armstrong was.
Now, on the subject of has Rafa or any other player ever taken dodgy stuff ,that’s a more serious question I don’t know the answer to.
Performance enhancement is a doping allegation.
How about that pod that Novak was using in the past? The one that was supposed to help regenerate red blood cells? It wasn’t banned but it was discouraged for use by athletes.
‘Performance enhancement is a doping allegation’.
Not necessarily, doping suggests illegal drugs ,doesnt it?
There could well be an effect from legal ones as well .
But why compare the rules of tennis with cycling, esp by two obscure guys ? Thats what I find hard to take seriously . They may well have a moral point about sport in general but nothing more.
Other point was the number of times Nole was mentioned in this discussion when its not about him- I never said he was perfect here – yet we have to have ‘what about’ comments.
Performance enhancing ? Thats a whole discussion in itself. Such as open roof/closed roof, no problem when it suits your favourite player.Not always to do with drugs.
littlefoot,
You have responded in a nicer way than I would, but I think you do get that claiming this article was humorous, is dishonest and disingenuous.
I actually have no desire to discuss the meritless accusations of those cyclists. There will always be those who make baseless allegations against athletes. Maybe they needed the attention.
I am trying to focus on Wimbledon and hopefully seeing Rafa play.
Oh please! Spare me! No one with half a brain would post an article like that and not expect people to react negatively!
It was not meant to be humorous! It was meant to question Rafa’s performance at RG. There is nothing humorous about specious and unfounded accusations of performance enhancement!
I think it’s quite scary that anyone would think this was not meant to incite and anger Rafa fans. Oh and the serious obsession lies with said person who decided to post this garbage in the first place!
Quick and expected response .Usual opening line .
I just shared a link to a news article that happened to appear on my home page , why wouldnt I? There was nothing premeditated about it .
And actually, what wrong with questioning anything in our sport? No player is above that !
Let me know when you post something similar about Novak! You are not fooling anyone.
You can’t even be honest about what you did.
What’s wrong with posting a link to a news item that’s freely available.Whether you agree or not.
Talking about Djokovic,he did get enough coverage and deserved criticism for being Novax.I didn’t defend him