Nadal buries Ferrer to etch French Open history

If the 112th French Open turned into a coronation parade into the weighty pages of history, it was made all the more remarkable by the fact that the man himself was on court writing the story. The common folk peer from their distant graves waiting for some stranger to tell their story long after they are gone. And then there are a rare few who are born with an elegant pen to ink their own golden leaves even as they tread majestically through the sands of time. Rafael Nadal is one of those rare young men. It was indeed a David versus Goliath battle, but without the marquee ending. Ferrer’s act of David had neither the guile nor gumption to seriously challenge the Emperor of clay on his favourite red shale of Paris. The Mallorcan scripted to himself an enviable and historic 8th title at Roland Garros, mauling his fellow Spaniard, David Ferrer 6-3, 6-2, 6-3 to take the Coupe des Mousquetaires for a momentous eighth time.

Even the weather turned benign as the Parisian subjects of the Spanish matador gathered to celebrate yet another coronation parade, as they have for year after year since 2005. Standing in the path of the Emperor from Manacor was David Ferrer, an embodiment of consistent effort and dedication, if there was ever one. While the emperor was attempting to surpass every king that reined before him, the invader was battling just to decorate an emaciated career spent in the giant shadow of his prolific compatriot. The crown is resting firmly on the humble champion’s head and one has to believe it will take a super human effort next year for any challenger to threaten the rein of the peerless emperor.

Nadal was challenged by each of his first three opponents, before enacting yet another memorable encounter against his main challenger Novak Djokovic in the semi-finals on Friday. On the other hand, Ferrer had swept through the draw with majestic ease without dropping a set. Incidentally, Nadal and Ferrer were also the most successful players on the ATP World Tour this year with 42 and 37 victories leading into the final. All those numbers though barely mattered, as Nadal smothered Ferrer into submission, despite pockets of resistance from the spirited Valencian.

There was a sense of vacuum on Court Philippe Chatrier as the event was deprived of a deserving finale. Many agree that the semi-final between Nadal and Novak Djokovic was indeed the real battle for the title and Ferrer’s meek surrender only served to underline the argument. Nadal steam rolled his way past Ferrer with 35 winners, saving 9 of 12 break chances on his serve to deprive Ferrer of a realistic chance of finding his way into the match. The statistic that might most impress the Nadal camp is the fact that their ward won 13 of 17 forays to the net in an utterly dominant performance that lasted two hours and 16 minutes.

Nadal is a familiar warrior in this nick of the woods, but the third point of the second game served to underline his credentials and serve a warning to his opponent. Nadal was quick to rustle Ferrer, forcing him to scamper after a ferocious forehand behind the baseline before ending the rally with a feathery drop shot.