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In June 2019, Rafael Nadal toppled Dominic Thiem in the Roland Garros final, becoming the third player in the Open era with the crown in Paris after turning 33. Andres Gimeno and Ken Rosewall did that in 1968 and 1972, four decades before the Spaniard and in a completely different tennis era.

In those first years of the Open era, the age was just a number since we had many successful players older than 35. Still, it wasn't easy to conquer Roland Garros following the 30th birthday even in those days, with only four players achieving that before 2015 and one between 1973-2014!

Stan Wawrinka joined the list in 2015 before Rafael Nadal regained his Parisian kingdom two years later, celebrating at Roland Garros a couple of days after turning 31. Thus, Rafa became the third-oldest champion of the clay Major after Gimeno and Rosewall, staying undefeated in the French capital in the next three years to enter the record books.

Turning 34 in June, the great Spaniard had to wait for four months before embracing another Roland Garros campaign, with the latest edition taking place in October following the coronavirus pandemic. Facing many challenges, Nadal endured them all to lift the 13th trophy in Paris, becoming the second-oldest Roland Garros champion (34 years and four months) after Andres Gimeno in 1972!

For the fourth time in his career, Rafa claimed the title in Paris without losing a set, making his feat even more impressive, although it was anything but easy for him during the French capital fortnight. Dealing with cold and rainy weather, the new Wilson balls and a roof on Court Philippe-Chatrier, Nadal passed seven obstacles to claim the 13th crown from 16 appearances in Paris, winning 100 out of 102 matches at his beloved Major and writing history books.

At 34, Rafael Nadal became the second-oldest Roland Garros champion.

Nadal may not be as quick as in his prime years, but to beat him at Roland Garros is still the most challenging task in tennis, the one that requires something special from the rival on the other side of the net.

There wasn't a single one who could produce that level, with Rafa beating all competitors in straight sets to lift the 20th Major trophy, joining Roger Federer at the top of the GOAT race. In the semis, Nadal took down Diego Schwartzman 6-3, 6-3, 7-6 after three hours and nine minutes of a grueling battle, prevailing in the third-set tie break to march into the final without losing a set.

In the title match, Nadal produced a masterclass in a 6-0, 6-0, 7-5 victory over world no. 1 Novak Djokovic, blowing Novak off the court in the opening two sets and staying focused in the third to become a Major champion at 34.

By Russell Fuller
BBC tennis correspondent
Last updated on 12 October 202012 October 2020.
From the section Tennis
Rafael Nadal smiles with the French Open trophy
Rafael Nadal won his 13th French Open on Sunday
"I think our generation is now on the way out," Rafael Nadal said at the French Open of 2014.

"A generation is walking away, and others will replace us."

That remains to this day one of my favourite Nadal quotes. Laced with humility, even if it did not age as well as he has.

Nearly six and a half years later, and Nadal is not only a 13-time Roland Garros champion, but also a 20-time Grand Slam champion.

Sparkling in defence, and explosive in attack in Sunday's final against Novak Djokovic, Nadal produced a performance every bit the equal of his jaw dropping 6-1 6-3 6-0 win over Roger Federer in the 2008 final.

Rafael Nadal beats Novak Djokovic to win 13th Roland Garros title
Roger Federer hails Rafael Nadal after Spaniard equals his record
Which way will the GOAT race turn?
He now has the same number of Grand Slams as Federer, although both are still shy of Serena Williams' Open era record of 23.

The Swiss was quick to offer his congratulations, and "hopes 20 is just another step on the continuing journey for both of us".

Federer, now in his 40th year, has featured in just one of the past 10 Slam finals. Nadal has appeared in half of them, and given he was able to win Roland Garros without dropping a set (with just three matches under his belt since February), may one day be in Williams territory.

Not that Djokovic is remotely done. He is a year younger than Nadal, has been in six of the past 10 Slam finals, and is fuelled by the thought of ending his career with more Grand Slams than any other man.

Nadal always says you cannot go through life worrying about the fact your neighbour has a bigger house or a bigger boat (unlikely in his case), but is also open about his desire to retire on top of the pile.

Some will argue Nadal's success is inflated by his mastery of clay. True, 65% of his Grand Slams have come at Roland Garros, but think how injury has robbed him of further opportunities in Melbourne, Wimbledon and New York.

The debate about the greatest male player of all time has become increasingly partisan. We can all throw statistics at one another, but the attachment is more emotional. You may have found the rivalry between Federer and Nadal - each a perfect foil to the other - too compelling not to take sides.

But how about the achievements of the man, from a country with little tennis heritage, who broke up that duopoly? How about the 12-year-old boy who found a path out of Belgrade, having spent 78 consecutive nights sheltering from the Nato bombings?

There will, of course, never be a definitive answer (although you can cast your vote at the bottom of this page), so the number of Grand Slams won will carry a lot of weight. Weeks as world number one, Olympic gold medals and Davis Cup titles all count for a great deal, but if you want to boil this down to a numbers game, then the Grand Slams remain the sport's reference point.

There seemed only two plausible winners of this French Open, given Dominic Thiem was, in his own words, not running on a full tank after his US Open triumph.

But the betting market will become more crowded in the year ahead. Thiem has himself been in four of the past 10 Slam finals, and Stefanos Tsitsipas and Alexander Zverev look closer to completing their education in what it takes to win a Grand Slam.

And so to January's Australian Open in Melbourne. Djokovic's most successful Slam will be Federer's comeback Slam, and perhaps an event that owes Nadal a favour. The Spaniard has lost four finals and often struggled with injury there in recent years.

Nadal will decide on the remainder of this season's schedule with that tournament, and a likely two-week quarantine, very much in mind.

The clay may not yet be out of his racquet strings, but all roads are already pointing towards Melbourne.
Who will win the most Grand Slam titles?

This vote is now closed. Here are the final results.

Novak Djokovic
40%
Rafael Nadal
42%
Roger Federer
18%

Rafael Plaza
Spaniard speaks to ATPTour.com after winning his 13th Roland Garros title

The morning after winning his 13th Roland Garros trophy and equalling Roger Federer’s record haul of 20 Grand Slam crowns, Rafael Nadal had a lot of things to do and very little time.

So, after a brief photo session on the terrace of his hotel with the Coupe des Mousquetaires, the Spaniard climbed into a car to the airport for his flight home and gave an interview to ATPTour.com over a Zoom video call. Nadal spoke in Spanish and his answers have been translated.

This is Nadal with his guard down, a tennis player talking openly and transparently.

Have you stamped your authority by winning the title in Paris again, but this time in very unfavourable conditions?
Stamping my authority is not really my thing. I played a very good tournament given the conditions, taking steps forward every day. I played the perfect match when I had to in the final. Simply, every day I played well enough to win the matches.

Did you think that maybe you wouldn’t win this year?
Every time I come to Paris I don’t think I’m going to win. I arrive excited that I might do it, but knowing that the most logical outcome is that I don’t. Winning is not normal, and I am always very aware of that. As I said from the first day, this year was the most adverse Roland Garros I have played in, first because of the conditions and second because my preparation was practically non-existent in terms of tournaments.

Where did the plan come from to approach the final against Djokovic in that way?
My last match on clay with him was in Rome last year. There I was coming out of a very bad spell and I played very well. I used that as a kind of reference. We went out with a more or less clear idea of what we wanted to do. And then the more complicated part came: putting it into practice. Luckily, yesterday was one of those days when I was able to do it. My tennis game was feeling really good and everything worked perfectly.

<a href='/en/players/rafael-nadal/n409/overview'>Rafael Nadal</a> owns a 100-2 record at <a href='/en/tournaments/roland-garros/520/overview'>Roland Garros</a>.

From the first day, and despite losing in the quarter-finals in Rome, your surroundings added weight to an interesting message: the big difference between the Foro Italico and Court Philippe-Chatrier.
In Rome, I have won nine times, the venue also suits me very well. Chatrier is a very difficult court, very big. You have some huge dimensions there. However, there is one intangible thing. When you’ve played very well many times in one place, it’s easier to do it. There’s extra belief in yourself, and that has a decisive influence.

After winning the final, you said that you’d been through some ‘difficult months’. What were you talking about?
On a social level, we’ve been living with continuous problems. On a personal level, it’s a reality that after the lockdown I went through a bad time, my body did not respond in the best way possible. I had a lot of days where I could only train very little, with unpleasant feelings in my body. All of that, together with training without clear goals, makes the problem worse.

What did you do to overcome that?
I had the right people by my side. They pushed me when necessary and they gave me the freedom to enjoy other things when I really needed to. We’ve had to make difficult decisions, like not going to New York. Everything is good or bad based on the final result. Right now, it seems like it was successful because I won at Roland Garros, if I had lost maybe it wouldn’t have been so good. That’s the reality of sport, a totally result-based world. The decisions were made consensually, analysing everything. Beyond the result, personally, I’m very happy with the steps we took.

How has what is going on in the world affected you?
I’ve been more subdued than normal, but that’s a general feeling throughout the world. We’re in a sad situation. You can’t share moments with people you’d like to. Everything is less pleasant and you cannot remove yourself from the things that are going on in the world, also knowing that we are back in a complicated situation in Spain. It is normal to suffer because of what’s happening. There have been other pandemics in the past, but in recent history we have not been through one. Even so, I’ve been focused and had the necessary attitude when required. It’s the thing I am most satisfied about in the whole tournament.

And the bubble? You’ve been locked in it with Carlos Moya and Rafael Maymo for more than two weeks.
Personally, I find it harder than they do. I’m a person who prefers being with people more. Carlos has always had the ability to get by on his own, as has Rafa. For me it’s a little harder. The days have seemed longer to me than to them, but we’ve rediscovered things that we had forgotten. It’d been three years since I’d picked up a PlayStation controller, and we played it a lot with each other. We’ve also been reading all the latest news and watching the odd series to kill time.

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Was it difficult to play without fans?
At least here there was an atmosphere, compared to Rome. Yesterday, there were people in the final for the first time. My family and team were in my box. That changed the perspective of everything a little. In Rome, the whole court was empty, a much more difficult situation.

Are you overwhelmed by the response to your victory?
I don’t know what it’s been like because I’ve barely had the chance to look at anything. On a sporting level, it’s clear that I’ve achieved something significant: winning one of the most important tournaments in the world 13 times and equalling Federer with 20. We’ve been talking about this for a long time, particularly you journalists. I’ve managed to equal a record that seemed impossible.

So, can it now be said openly that you are the best in history?
The numbers should be analysed by people who have good knowledge of the history of tennis. Honestly, it doesn’t matter to me much. I’m happy with my career. At the moment, it’s clear that I’m one of the two. We’ll see what happens in the next few years: what Djokovic does, what Federer does when he returns and what I keep doing. If all goes well, we’ll have time to analyse it when our careers are over.

Federer was one of the first to congratulate you.
Federer and I have had a very good relationship for many years. We have great admiration for one another. We’ve shared many of the most important moments of our careers competing against one another to the point of creating a rivalry that has surpassed the boundaries of tennis. We value it and appreciate it in a special way. Tying him at 20 means a lot, it’s a great honour. It’s a wonderful thing.


Can one have a good relationship despite competing for the same thing?
As always, you have to put things into perspective a little. We’re playing tennis, nothing more. Life is more pleasant when you have a good relationship with your rivals. Going into the locker room with a positive atmosphere, talking to others, it makes life more enjoyable at tournaments than if you have extreme rivalries.

With 20 Grand Slams, what’s left to win?
To keep enjoying daily life. In the end, I’m a lucky person. Life has smiled upon me so far. I don’t know what is left for me to win, but the excitement is in continuing to move forward. If you don’t have that enthusiasm it’s time to dedicate yourself to something else. As long as I have it, I have to keep working hard every day to keep giving myself chances of competing at the highest level.

Before your opener in Rome, in 2014, you said that Bjorn Borg’s head was gone at 26, despite being an exceptional champion. What do you do to keep that flame burning at 34?
Like everyone, I’ve had some good times and some bad, times of enthusiasm and times of disillusion, above all when there were more physical issues than normal. I’ve been lucky to have a fantastic environment around me, a family and a team that have been with me throughout my career. I have a stable personality, I’m not overexcited when things go well, and nor am I excessively negative when they go wrong. That helps me to experience things with peace of mind in order to continue. In the end, it all comes down to something simpler: the passion you are born with.

What do you feel like doing when you get to Mallorca?
Getting back into normal life a little. Returning home and having the feeling of freedom. Going to play golf, visiting the academy... Living a life a little more normal than these past 20 days and seeing people that I haven’t been able to during this whole time.

What’s left for you in 2020?
Today more than ever, decisions have to be taken calmly, analysing all the situations well. I need a little time to know what my schedule will be.

Coach Carlos Moya hinted that world No. 2 Rafael Nadal was in a dark place earlier this year and that Team Nadal had to act as psychologists. Nadal made it all the way in Acapulco without a dropped set just days before the ATP suspended the season due to the coronavirus outbreak.

The coronavirus pandemic put the rest of the season in jeopardy as people had to stay at home and many struggled to adapt to the new normal. "Nobody knows how Rafael Nadal has spent these months, what he’s been through” Moya told ABC, per Tennishead.

“Obviously, it has been a very unusual year, but for everyone. “People who do not see the day to day have not been aware of what these months have been. “They have not been easy, but hey. In the end, he has had an incredible attitude.

“It has been possible to achieve with a lot of work, the day to day was not easy. "In addition to his head and what he could think, there was the situation that has affected the whole world”. "We have had to act as psychologists for the whole team.

Those of us who have been with him every day have not been workers, we have had to be friends. There have been moments of uncertainty, difficult moments."
Moya says the main goal was accomplished as Nadal returned to his best

Nadal skipped the season restart in the United States over the coronavirus concerns.

The Spaniard kicked off his season at the Rome Masters, where he picked up a shock quarterfinal defeat to Diego Schwartzman. Some thought this would be the year Nadal loses at the French Open but that wasn't the case as the Spaniard won it all at Roland Garros without a dropped set.

“Many factors come in: mental, adaptation, coping with it in the best possible way, overcoming bad times," Moya added. “There have been them in recent months, but we were clear about the goal and we tried to put that above all.

“The goal was to return to the Rafa Nadal of old, a competitive Rafa, enjoying tennis. That goal has been achieved”. After beating Novak Djokovic in the French Open final 6-2 6-0 7-5, Nadal was happy with the title but he was sad because the stands weren't full.

"We didn't enjoy, as always, a full crowd, an amazing atmosphere. So, yeah, not because I won the tournament I change my thoughts, no? The situation still sad. We are lucky enough to be able to practice, to play our sport, to have a tour," Nadal said in his press conference, per Max Gao.