The Spanish tennis player, maximum winner of the French competition, will face the Norwegian, who has him as maximum idol. Moreover, the Scandinavian established Manacorí academy as their base of operations, where they played practice matches.
Rafael Nadal wants to continue writing the history of tennis and Roland Garros. The Spanish tennis player, today fifth in the world, will seek his fourteenth title on French clay at 9 a.m. this Sunday to further increase his legend in the Parisian Grand Slam.
Rafa doesn’t want to stop breaking records. With 13 trophies in France, that of Manacor settled in another final after beating Alexander Zverev (3rd) by abandonment , who injured his ankle in the second set. Moments of tension that caused silence to seize the Court Philippe Chatrier while the German shouted.
The pain was such that the player had to retire to a wheelchair and, after a few minutes of medical examination in the locker room, he had to leave.
On the other hand, Casper Ruud (8th) had a touch which, at first, seemed more complex, especially since his rival, the experienced Marin Čilić (23rd) , won the first set 6-3. However, the Norwegian was able to wake up in time and, displaying his best version, represented the Croatian in the next three sets, 6-4, 6-2 and 6-2.
Until recently, the Norwegian was just a tennis promise, and he had posters of the Spaniard in his bedroom, dreaming of wielding the racquet like his idol. A bond that does not end in idolatry for one another, since, in addition, He knows the Spaniard closely, since four years ago he set up his training base at the Rafa Nadal Academy.
For Ruud, the final is very important. Beyond his obvious happiness to be the first Norwegian to reach a final at Roland-Garros, the native of Oslo has never faced his idol in an official match. Therefore, as the duel approaches, Ruud explained what the possibility of playing for the Grand Slam title against Nadal means to him.
“To play against Nadal in the Roland Garros final is the biggest challenge in sport. He has won all 13 finals here for what seems like an impossible feat. Of course, it will be difficult because we all know what a great champion he is and that he always plays well in big moments. I will try to enjoy it and dream that I make a lot of winners and very long points. I am aware that I am not the favourite, but I have to believe that I can win.” he confessed.
Face to face, they only met in training in Mallorca. For this reason, Ruud said, between two jokes, that he could never beat the Spaniard, but he always showed himself as the respectful student in front of the teacher. “It’s true that we played a few practice sets. He always won me over. We played in his academy and he wanted to be educated.” story.
A story of idolatry
The devotion to the figure of Nadal is long-standing. According to Ruud himself, he knows by heart the 13 finals that Rafa played at Roland Garros, and that’s why now that he will be on the other side of the net, it’s a dream come true. He was even in court in the eighth. “I think I’ve seen them all and I could tell who he played with in each of them. It’s amazing to be able to be there after seeing players like Puerta, Federer, Djokovic, Thiem, Wawrinka from the other side of the net… It’s something I will always remember throughout my career.” tenuous.
For this reason, it is a final that will oppose two acquaintances who have not met on the big stages of world tennis and who are 13 years apart, with different experiences. Over the past four years, Ruud climbed 140 places, until he entered the ATP top 10 and become, for good measure, the highest ranked Norwegian in history. And from February 2020 to today, he was able to win eight titles.
In more prestigious tournaments, he recently reached his first Masters 1000 final in Miami, which he lost to Carlos Alcaraz (6th). Now he is facing his first Grand Slam final, following his best performance at major tournaments in Australia this year when he managed to reach the knockout stages.
And, on the side of Manacor, not much more to say: 21 Grand Slam titles, the most successful of this type of tournament, which in its wide and extensive record counts a whopping 91 individual crowns.
So, in an unprecedented finale, Nadal looks to continue expanding his tennis legacy, while his rival arrives hoping to topple the idol he has seen reflected since childhood. Today, master and disciple are going to seek glory in France.
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Source: Latercera
I’m Todderic Kirkman, a journalist and author for athletistic. I specialize in covering all news related to sports, ranging from basketball to football and everything in between. With over 10 years of experience in the industry, I have become an invaluable asset to my team. My ambition is to bring the most up-to-date information on sports topics around the world.
