Paris: Rafael Nadal steamrolled youngster Casper Ruud to win his 14th French Open title at Court Philippe-Chatrier on Sunday. Nadal beat the 23-year-old 6-3, 6-3, 6-0 to take his Grand Slam title tally to 22 – two more than his old rivals Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic.
“I never believed I would be here at 36, being competitive again, playing in the most important court of my career one more time in a final,” Nadal said during the trophy presentation.
He then went on to say that he wants to keep going, allaying fears of a retirement announcement.
“I don’t know what can happen in the future, but I’m going to keep fighting to try to keep going,” Nadal said, drawing applause from the crowd at Court Philippe-Chatrier.
The left foot problem caused Nadal to miss last year’s Wimbledon, US Open and Olympics in Tokyo and he did not return until the build-up to the 2022 Australian Open, which he went on to win for the second time.
Speaking at the news conference after his record-extending Roland Garros victory, Nadal said nobody wants to miss Wimbledon and he, of course, has dreams of winning the grass-court major for the third time in his career after triumphant campaigns in 2008 and 2010.
“Wimbledon is not a tournament that I want to miss. I think nobody wants to miss Wimbledon. I love Wimbledon, I have had a lot of success there. Full credit and respect for the tournament. A player like me, I am always ready to play Wimbledon. If you ask if I will be at Wimbledon, I can’t give a clear answer. If want to win Wimbledon, of course, let’s see how the treatment goes,” Nadal said.
Wimbledon 2022, which will be devoid of any ranking points after the tournament organisers banned Russia and Belarusian players, will get underway from June 27 in London.
“It’s obvious that I can’t keep competing with the foot asleep,” Nadal said.
The Spaniard, who became the oldest men’s singles champion at Roland Garros, said he will consider surgery if the treatment he intends to have doesn’t work.
