Paris, France (Sports Network) - Rafael Nadal continued his incredible success on the famed red clay of Roland Garros with a dominant straight-set victory over Roger Federer to claim his fourth consecutive French Open title.
The second-seeded Nadal posted a 6-1, 6-3, 6-0 victory and beat Federer for the third straight time in the French Open final. Federer had been able to at least take one set from Nadal the previous two years, but there was no stopping the super Spaniard this time.
Nadal, who is 28-0 all-time at the French Open, did not drop a set during the fortnight and improved to an astounding 115-2 on clay since 2005. He became just the second man to win four straight French Open titles in the Open Era (1968), joining the legendary Bjorn Borg. A six-time French champion, Borg, who was in attendance at Court Chatrier and presented the trophies, won four in a row from 1978-81.
"Winning four times in a row is incredible," said a humble Nadal. "The comparison with Borg is always very nice, especially because he's much better than me."
Federer is still a French Open title away from completing a career Grand Slam. He has 12 career major titles, two shy of Pete Sampras' all-time mark, and will try to close in on that record at his favorite venue -- Wimbledon. Play starts June 23 on the grass courts at the All-England Club, where Federer is the five-time defending champ.
"To lose the way I did today, it's obviously hard and it's a rough loss, but it's okay. I'll move on from here, and I'll try again next year," said Federer.
Nadal improved to 11-6 lifetime against Federer, including 9-1 on clay and 4-0 at Roland Garros. In addition to the last three French Open finals, Nadal also topped Federer in the 2005 semifinals. Nadal is 4-2 in their Grand Slam matchups, with all four wins coming in Paris and both losses coming at Wimbledon.
It was complete domination from the start.
Nadal broke Federer's serve in the very first game and the top-seeded Swiss star managed to win just 15 points during the entire first set.
After Nadal's break of serve in the first game, Federer had two chances to break right back in the second. He could not take advantage and was forced to save a pair of break points with aces in the next game just to make it 2-1.
Nadal easily held in the next game, then broke Federer at love for 4-1 and the momentum continued into the next two games. Federer managed to win just one point in his final service game as Nadal captured the first set in a mere 32 minutes.
Federer again lost serv
e in the second game of the second set to put himself in a hole, but he quickly regrouped and broke Nadal in the next game. He had another break-point chance in the seventh game, but netted a running backhand and Nadal eventually held for a 4-3 lead.
"I guess that was my best chance," Federer remarked. "But if that would have completely turned the match, I don't know."
Nadal then broke serve in the next game with a backhand passing shot, after Federer had already saved three break-point chances, and held serve in the next game to capture the second set.
The third set was a mere formality.
Nadal quickly broke serve in the first game and, at the same moment, appeared to break Federer's resolve. The third set took just 27 minutes as Federer won only 11 points and committed 10 unforced errors.
"He's dominated everybody he played these last two weeks," Federer stated. "When you really cannot play your game and he can play exactly the way he wants from the baseline, well, you end up with scores like this sometimes. It's tough for the opponent, obviously."
By dropping only four games, Nadal posted the second-most lopsided victory in a French Open final. In 1977, Guillermo Vilas defeated Brian Gottfried, 6-0, 6-3, 6-0.
"I can only praise him for the level of play he's had for the last two weeks and today again under pressure," Federer commented. "It's not like it's easy for him either. He handles it very well. To come up with a performance like this under pressure shows what a great champion he is."
Federer fell to 54-20 in ATP-level finals, including a disappointing 1-3 this year. He titled in Estoril, but lost to Nadal at his other title match appearances -- in Monte Carlo and Hamburg before Sunday's setback.
Nadal, who turned 22 on Tuesday, earned his 27th career ATP title in his 35th final. He is 4-2 in 2008 finals, having previously captured titles in Monte Carlo, Barcelona and Hamburg.
Next it will be on to Wimbledon, where the roles have been reversed. Nadal has lost the last two finals at the All-England Club to Federer.
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The second-seeded Nadal posted a 6-1, 6-3, 6-0 victory and beat Federer for the third straight time in the French Open final. Federer had been able to at least take one set from Nadal the previous two years, but there was no stopping the super Spaniard this time.
Nadal, who is 28-0 all-time at the French Open, did not drop a set during the fortnight and improved to an astounding 115-2 on clay since 2005. He became just the second man to win four straight French Open titles in the Open Era (1968), joining the legendary Bjorn Borg. A six-time French champion, Borg, who was in attendance at Court Chatrier and presented the trophies, won four in a row from 1978-81.
"Winning four times in a row is incredible," said a humble Nadal. "The comparison with Borg is always very nice, especially because he's much better than me."
Federer is still a French Open title away from completing a career Grand Slam. He has 12 career major titles, two shy of Pete Sampras' all-time mark, and will try to close in on that record at his favorite venue -- Wimbledon. Play starts June 23 on the grass courts at the All-England Club, where Federer is the five-time defending champ.
"To lose the way I did today, it's obviously hard and it's a rough loss, but it's okay. I'll move on from here, and I'll try again next year," said Federer.
Nadal improved to 11-6 lifetime against Federer, including 9-1 on clay and 4-0 at Roland Garros. In addition to the last three French Open finals, Nadal also topped Federer in the 2005 semifinals. Nadal is 4-2 in their Grand Slam matchups, with all four wins coming in Paris and both losses coming at Wimbledon.
It was complete domination from the start.
Nadal broke Federer's serve in the very first game and the top-seeded Swiss star managed to win just 15 points during the entire first set.
After Nadal's break of serve in the first game, Federer had two chances to break right back in the second. He could not take advantage and was forced to save a pair of break points with aces in the next game just to make it 2-1.
Nadal easily held in the next game, then broke Federer at love for 4-1 and the momentum continued into the next two games. Federer managed to win just one point in his final service game as Nadal captured the first set in a mere 32 minutes.
Federer again lost serv
e in the second game of the second set to put himself in a hole, but he quickly regrouped and broke Nadal in the next game. He had another break-point chance in the seventh game, but netted a running backhand and Nadal eventually held for a 4-3 lead.
"I guess that was my best chance," Federer remarked. "But if that would have completely turned the match, I don't know."
Nadal then broke serve in the next game with a backhand passing shot, after Federer had already saved three break-point chances, and held serve in the next game to capture the second set.
The third set was a mere formality.
Nadal quickly broke serve in the first game and, at the same moment, appeared to break Federer's resolve. The third set took just 27 minutes as Federer won only 11 points and committed 10 unforced errors.
"He's dominated everybody he played these last two weeks," Federer stated. "When you really cannot play your game and he can play exactly the way he wants from the baseline, well, you end up with scores like this sometimes. It's tough for the opponent, obviously."
By dropping only four games, Nadal posted the second-most lopsided victory in a French Open final. In 1977, Guillermo Vilas defeated Brian Gottfried, 6-0, 6-3, 6-0.
"I can only praise him for the level of play he's had for the last two weeks and today again under pressure," Federer commented. "It's not like it's easy for him either. He handles it very well. To come up with a performance like this under pressure shows what a great champion he is."
Federer fell to 54-20 in ATP-level finals, including a disappointing 1-3 this year. He titled in Estoril, but lost to Nadal at his other title match appearances -- in Monte Carlo and Hamburg before Sunday's setback.
Nadal, who turned 22 on Tuesday, earned his 27th career ATP title in his 35th final. He is 4-2 in 2008 finals, having previously captured titles in Monte Carlo, Barcelona and Hamburg.
Next it will be on to Wimbledon, where the roles have been reversed. Nadal has lost the last two finals at the All-England Club to Federer.
The Sports Network.com
