By Sudipto Ganguly

PARIS (Reuters) – Rafael Nadal crushed Casper Ruud to win the 14th French Open trophy. This was a new record and he has increased his lead in the men’s Grand Slam leaderboard.

The Spaniard (who turned 36 Friday) beat Norwegian Ruud by 6-3,6-3,6-0 in Paris on a sunny afternoon to make sure he won each claycourt Grand Slam final.

Nadal, who won the Musketeers’ Cup once more, was now halfway through his calendar Grand Slam.

Victory granted Nadal a 22nd Grand Slam title that was a record and made him two points ahead of Novak Djokovic, world number 1, from Serbia, and Swiss Roger Federer for the men’s race to the most significant titles.

Nadal, like his Melbourne Park leadup major, arrived at Roland Garros having persistent fitness doubts. He had suffered a rib stress injury and a chronic foot injury.

Nadal passed Andres Gimeno, a Spaniard, to become the oldest Roland Garros men’s singles champion.

Under overcast skies, the king walked on Court Philippe chatrier to a standing ovation. Fans added some excitement with trumpets and drums.

A statue in the honor of the Spaniard has been erected at Western Paris’ Claycourt Arena. It was a great way to kick off the celebration for his supporters.

Nadal and Ruud hadn’t played in a match until Sunday. However, the pair have met many times at Ruud’s school in Mallorca. The Norwegian also stated that he had never been able to win a practice against his idol.

Nadal is 13 years younger to the Norwegian and the record will not change after Sunday.

Ruud led the men’s Tour from the beginning of 2020 in claycourt wins finals and titles. Although he was the first national to win a Grand Slam singles title, he wasn’t able to match Nadal.

BLISTERING START

Nadal was a fast start and raced to a 2-0 advantage with his forehand passing shot, which secured Ruud’s first break.

The Spaniard was not as confident at claycourt Grand Slam. He made two errors on his forehand that were unforced and then committed two double faults.

Nadal’s brutal top-spin forehand soon discovered its range, and he began applying pressure Ruuds backhand to get a break.

Nadal took the win despite Nadal’s impressive forehand.

Ruud rose to the top at the beginning of the second. He saved three break points in order to keep serve. His opponent was impressed by his ability to charge down the court and reach a drop shot that turned it into a winner.

Nadal was soon beaten by the Norwegian, who quickly took a lead in the match. However, it was short-lived when Nadal erased his advantage in game 2.

Nadal, who was 3-1 down in the first set, won five more games to make it a winnable set.

Ruud was unable to extend the contest quickly. Nadal, who is a lefty player, put on an impressive show and won 11 consecutive games over the second set.

Ruud was put out of his misery by winning a backhand point down the line. The contest ended in 2 hours 18 minutes.