Fight but no light for Nadal in likely French Open adieu

The prolonged closing chapter of greats, particularly in an arena as inconsistent and undependable as professional sport, is a true tribulation of the mind.

- KIERAN JACKSON

It’s like the blowing of a long-standing bulb: you flick the switch – more than once, as many as thrice – in a subconscious instruction to your brain that it cannot be time to recycle and replace. But sometimes there can be no denying the undeniable, no matter how unpalatable. Power is not possible any more.

Yet over the past two decades, nothing has been as consistent and dependable as Rafael Nadal at Roland Garros. Eighteen appearances, 14 titles, one king of clay. Domination unparalleled not just in tennis but in the history of sport. His legacy is indisputable, illustrated best by his silver statue on the east side of the complex. Yet ultimately, nobody fools Father Time.

And so it came to pass that, after 116 matches, Nadal lost in week one at the French Open for the first time. Handed the toughest first-round draw possible – against the tour’s most inform, injury-free player – Alexander Zverev packed a punch to brutally dismiss any notion of a glorious swansong, triumphing 6-3, 7-6 (5), 6-3.

Two years on from rupturing ankle ligaments under the Philippe Chatrier roof, as Nadal progressed to what surely will be his final title in Paris, the German earned his stripes in the same setting and put his name in the history books. For Novak Djokovic (2015, 2021) and Robin Soderling (2009), see Alexander Zverev (2024): men to defeat Rafa on Chatrier.

Come the finale, as modern greats Djokovic, Carlos Alcaraz and Iga Swiatek watched on like simple punters, Nadal took centre stage and waved goodbye. Briefly, the sun glinted through the open-plan roof, glistening onto this venue’s omnipresent champion. On a gloomy day in western Paris, it was an apt conclusion.