French Open

Nadal

Rafa Nadal

(Bild: AFP or licensors)

The Nadal era in Paris is over. In what was probably his last match at the French Open, the Spaniard lost 3:6, 6:7, 3:6 to Alexander Zverev despite a heroic fight. Over ten thousand fans celebrated him for the entire 3:04 hours against the German. Chants of Rafa rang out for minutes after the end of the match. "If that was my last time, I really enjoyed it," Nadal was moved. 

The "Krone" reports from Paris

Rafa fans wherever you looked. Even more than usual, T-shirts or caps with the bull horns, Nadal's trademark, dominated the grounds of Roland Garros. When the Spaniard warmed up on Court 3 in the morning, the fans were already queuing up. Many had not made it onto the court either, with the black market trade flourishing outside the gates.

People were queuing up for training.

(Bild: Gernot Bachler)

The closer the match approached, the more the atmosphere grew - including in the press box at Court Philippe Chatrier. Although it has several hundred seats, not all the journalists were able to get in.

A murmur went through the arena when Nadal was shown on a screen in the catacombs. When the stadium announcer announced the entry of the record winner for what was probably the last time, all the spectators stood up, applauded wildly, many horns sounded and loud choruses of "Rafa" rang out as the two players warmed up. The overture reached its climax when the French Open stadium announcer made probably the most famous introduction in tennis for the last time and listed all of Nadal's Paris titles, 2020 and 2022 could no longer be heard due to the noise.

Rafa fans were everywhere.

(Bild: Gernot Bachler)

Sobering
Of course, the first match was already sobering. The Spaniard lost his serve to zero. His forehand, which used to terrify opponents, had lost all its power and the number of mistakes he made was blatant compared to previous years. The cheers were all the greater when he won the game to make it 1:2 for the first time. After that, hope briefly flickered when Nadal even had a break point. But the bottom line was that Zverev was superior in all respects. The Spaniard's tennis was no longer there, but his fighting spirit was unbroken and it took the German 50 minutes to win 6:3.

The stadium, which was also packed with other top players such as Novak Djokovic, Carlos Alcaraz and Iga Swiatek, exploded in the second set. Nadal first fended off two break points, then managed to break Zverev himself to make it 3:2. Rafa jumped across the court, fists clenched, and his fans in the stands jumped even higher. Nadal now dared to hit his forehand faster and faster, and at the right moments he boldly advanced to the net to finish off the balls with feeling. Every Rafa point was celebrated frenetically. 

Alexander Zverev put in a focused performance.

(Bild: AP/Associated Press)

However, the 22-time Grand Slam winner ran out of steam towards the end of the second set. He tried to keep the points short, especially with stops. That didn't go well. Zverev broke back to 5:5 and won the tie-break 7:5.

Nadal gave hope one more time when he again took a 2:0 lead in the third set. Despite some good phases, you didn't get the impression that he could really win the match. The 38-year-old already looked too tired and the shots of the 11-year-old Zverev were too powerful in comparison. It was like watching a beautiful, but already old sailing ship in a regatta against a newer model.

Delaying the inevitable
But Rafa would never have become this tennis legend if he hadn't given his all on the court in every match. He fought and bit, fending off four break points at 2:2. However, he only postponed the inevitable. Zverev made up for what he had missed with the 4:3. 

After 3:04 hours, Nadal hit a forehand out of bounds to make it 3:6, 6:7, 3:6. His 116th match at the French Open, probably his very last, ended with only his fourth defeat! Unimaginable! There was only a brief handshake with Zverev, then everyone in the stadium stood up and loud choruses of Rafa were heard.

(Bild: AFP or licensors)

Rafael Nadal is the greatest inspiration we have in our sport, probably the greatest there is in sport.

Tennisstar Jannik Sinner

The Spaniard was visibly moved, fighting back tears. "I thank you from the bottom of my heart," he called out to the 15,000 and let them know that he didn't think he was finished yet. "I hope to be back here in two months and play in the Olympics."

No grass court season
Nadal's last press conference at the French Open was also wistful. He was already satisfied with his level compared to the last few weeks. "I was finally able to move again without limitations. I think I could have improved my tennis and my confidence day by day. But I didn't get those days." Nevertheless, this performance was undoubtedly a big step forward. There are around two months until the Olympics, Nadal will probably skip the grass season, at least that is his current plan.

"It was the hardest process of my career to get back here. I started at the lowest possible point. Physically, in terms of my game, in terms of my self-confidence. At least I was here. I lost, but that's part of it."

FRENCH OPEN (Grand Slam, 53.48m, clay) 

MEN - 1st round:
Filip Misolic (AUT) - Otto Virtanen (FIN) 4:6,4:6,6:3,6:4,6:2
Jannik Sinner (ITA-2) - Christopher Eubanks (USA) 6:3,6:3,6:4 
Alexander Zverev (GER-4) - Rafael Nadal (ESP) 6:3,7:6(5),6:3 
Stefanos Tsitsipas (GRE-9) - Marton Fucsovics (HUN) 7:6(7),6:4,6:1 
Tommy Paul (USA-14) - Pedro Cachin (ARG) 6:2,6:3,6:1 
Karen Khachanov (RUS-18) - Sumit Nagal (IND) 6:2,6:0,7:6(5) 
Sebastian Baez (ARG-20) - Gustavo Heide (BRA) 4:6,6:3,6:1,4:6,6:3 
Felix Auger-Aliassime (CAN-21) - Yoshihito Nishioka (JPN) 6:2,6:2,6:4 
Francisco Cerundolo (ARG-23) - Yannick Hanfmann (GER) 6:3 6:3,6:4 
Matteo Arnaldi (ITA) - Arthur Fils (FRA-29) 6:3,4:6,6:4,6:2 
Pavel Kotov (RUS) - Cameron Norrie (GBR-32) 4:6,6:3,3:6,7:6(5),6:2 

WOMEN - 1st round:
Iga Swiatek (POL-1) - Leolia Jeanjean (FRA) 6:1,6:2 
Coco Gauff (USA-3) - Julia Avdeyeva (RUS) 6:1,6:1
Marketa Vondrousova (CZE-5) - Rebeka Masarova (ESP) 6:1,6:3 
Varvara Gratcheva (FRA) - Maria Sakkari (GRE-6) 3:6,6:4,6:3 
Ons Jabeur (TUN-8) - Sachia Vickery (USA) 6:3,6:2 
Danielle Collins (USA-11) - Caroline Dolehide (USA) 6:3,6:4 
Jasmine Paolini (ITA-12) - Daria Saville (AUS) 6:3,6:4 
Viktoriya Tomova (BUL) - Ekaterina Alexandrova (RUS-16) 6:3,7:6(5) 
Lyudmila Samsonova (RUS-17) - Magda Linette (POL) 6:1, 6:1 
Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova (RUS-20) - Panna Udvardy (HUN) 6:3,6:4 
Anna Kalinskaya (RUS-23) - Clara Burel (FRA) 7:6(3),7:5 
Linda Noskova (CZE-27) - Harriet Dart (GBR) 7:6(3),6:4 
Leylah Fernandez (CAN-31) - Jessika Ponchet (FRA) 6:2,6:0