October 12 (DW) – Rafael Nadal produced a vintage performance on Sunday to remain the king of the clay in Paris. The Spaniard’s flawless 6-0, 6-2, 7-5 win over Novak Djokovic brought him his 13th French Open title.
Perhaps more significantly though, Nadal’s win equalled Roger Federer’s record of 20 Grand Slam titles, the last of which the Swiss won at the 2018 Australian Open.
“Winning here means everything to me,” Nadal said on court straight after his win. “I don’t think today about equalling Roger’s record of 20 Grand Slams. For me, today is a Roland Garros victory. Roland Garros means everything to me… many of the important moments of my career have been here. The love story I have with this city and this court is unforgettable.”
The French Open usually starts in late May but was postponed until late September due to the coronavirus pandemic. And Nadal had some words of encouragement for the world’s fight against the virus.
“I want to send a message to all the people in the world,” Nadal said. “We are going through a tough moment with this virus, but everyone stay positive and we will beat it together.”
