2019 French Open Men’s Singles Final: Rafael Nadal vs Dominic Thiem, Preview and Prediction
Rafael Nadal, the greatest clay court player in the history of men’s tennis, will feature in a record twelfth French Open final this Sunday.
Nadal has never lost a final at Roland Garros. Will it be any different this time around? It looks highly unlikely, even more so with Novak Djokovic out of the way.
Dominic Thiem may be the heir apparent to Nadal on clay, but this match in all likelihood will be a repeat of their summit clash last year, where the Spaniard stream-rolled the Austrian.
However, can Thiem be written off just like that? He has been steadily building his reputation as one of the best players on clay. He is also one of the few players apart from Djokovic who has posed some challenge to the king of clay in recent years.
In fact, he got the better of Nadal in their most recent meeting at Barcelona earlier this year, in straight sets. Of the twelve matches they have played against each other, all but one have come on clay. Thiem has won four of those eleven matches on clay, certainly a very creditable feat!
But with all due respect to Thiem and his prodigious talent, getting the better of Nadal on his beloved red dirt will prove to be a step too far. He played a great match against the world number one, Novak Djokovic, in the semi-final, but will have less than a day to recover from that match.
Expect a repeat of last year’s final. Nadal should win this in straights sets yet again to claim a record-extending 12th crown at Roland Garros.
Prediction: Rafael Nadal to win in Straight Sets