On the eve of the final, coach Carlos Moya said if his charge prevailed on Sunday it stood as his greatest Grand Slam run, surpassing even his surprise Australian Open title in January. We all hope you continue for some more time.” I’m not the first victim, I know there have been many before… You are a true inspiration for me, for everyone who follows tennis around the world. “Today I got to feel how it is to play you in a final. “It’s your 14th time here, 22nd all round in Grand Slams, we all know what a champion you are,” Ruud said during the trophy ceremony. While overawed in two hours and 18 minutes, he was far from disgraced. Ruud had waxed lyrical about his idol ahead of their title match and boasted of being able to name at will, every one of Nadal’s previous victims from 13 finals in Paris. I don’t know what can happen in the future but I’m going to keep fighting to try to keep going.” It means a lot of energy to try to keep going. “It means a lot to me, it means everything. It’s something that I’ve for sure never believed being here at 36, being competitive again playing on the most important court of my career one more time in a final.

“For me personally, it’s very difficult to describe the feelings that I have. “Without a doubt for me and I think for a lot of people who love the history of this sport, this is the best tournament of the world… You make me feel like home,” Nadal said. He eclipsed his late compatriot Andres Gimeno’s mark from 50 years ago and elevated his haul on the sport’s biggest stages to 22 majors, two clear of his nearest rivals Novak Djokovic and Roger Federer. At 36, Nadal became the oldest men’s champion in Paris.

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