Tennis

French Men's Singles 2022

Rafael Nadal's 36th birthday couldn't have been more happening as the World no.5 stormed into his 14th French Open final owing to Alexander Zverev's injury that forced him to withdraw from the semi-final match under a closed roof over Court Philippe-Chatrier on Friday (June 3).&nbsp;It could have been one of the most epic encounters in the Roland Garros semi-finals but Zverev twisted his ankle as he tried to retrieve a shot in the 12th game of the second set and screamed in pain before being taken off the court in a wheelchair.&nbsp;After several minutes off court, he returned to the Philippe Chatrier arena on crutches to concede the match. He was trailing Nadal 7-6(8) 6-6 when the match ended abruptly. Nadal is now through to his 14th French Open final and now awaits the winner of Casper Ruud versus Marin Cilic.&nbsp;Zverev made a stronger start and led 4-2 before Nadal bounced back to get back on the positive side.&nbsp;The German fended off three set points in the tenth game to introduce a tie break and opened a 6-2 advantage.&nbsp;Giving his best to survive, Rafael fended off four set points and stole the breaker 10-8 for a massive boost after an epic battle. Zverev led 5-3 in the second set and served for it before Nadal made another escape to prolong his chances.&nbsp;The set should have gone into a tie break, but Alexander injured his ankle in the 12th game's last point, leaving the court and returning on crutches just to announce the retirement. “It’s very tough and very sad for him. He was playing an unbelievable tournament and he’s a very good colleague on the tour," said Nadal.&nbsp;&nbsp;“I know how much he’s fighting to win a Grand Slam. For the moment, he was very unlucky. I’m sure he’ll win not one, but much more than one. I wish him all the best.&nbsp;&nbsp;“It had been a super tough match. Over three hours and we didn’t even finish the second set. It’s one of the biggest challenges on the tour when he’s playing like he did today," Nadal added.&nbsp;He further added: “For me, to be in the final of Roland Garros is a dream, without a doubt, but at the same time, for it to finish that way… I have been there in the small room with Sascha and to see him crying like that — I wish him all the best."

Rafael Nadal's 36th birthday couldn't have been more happening as the World no.

french-men-s-singles

Birthday Treat: Rafael Nadal rolls into 14th French Open final after Zverev forced to retire with injury

The whole world is glued to their television sets when the major Grand Slams come around the corner. This includes the very famous clay courts of Roland Garros, the tennis stadium named after a French aviation pioneer Eugene Adrien Roland Georges Garros. The French Open is the second of the four annual Grand Slam tournaments, the other three being the Australian Open, the US Open, and the Wimbledon. It is the only major Grand Slam to be played on clay. <h3>History of the French Open</h3>The men's edition of the French Open began in 1891 under the name 'Championnat de France', which translates to 'French Championships' in English. But in those days, the tournament was only open to members of French clubs. By 1925, the French Open was open to all amateurs internationally.&nbsp; The initial tournament was held at the Stade de France before the championship moved to the newly constructed Stade de Roland Garros in 1928, and has been held at the competition ever since.&nbsp; In 1946 and 1947, the French Championships were held after the Wimbledon, making it the third Grand Slam event of the year. In 1968, the French Championships were the first Grand Slam tournament to open, allowing both amateurs and professionals to compete. <h3>Open Era and the Nadal dominance</h3>The defending champion of the tournament is Novak Djokovic. The Serbian beat Stefanos Tsitsipas in a brilliant comeback, beating his opponent 6-7, 2-6, 6-3, 6-2, 6-4. But the world no. 1 is not the best player at the tournament. That record goes to Rafael Nadal, who established himself as a clay-court king during his illustrious career.&nbsp; Nadal won the French Open nine of the first 10 times, and 13 times overall. With a win rate of 97.2 percent, Nadal is by far the best player on the clay court that tennis has ever seen. He won the French Open on his first attempt as a 19-year-old in 2005 and then went on to add four more consecutive crowns from 2005 to 2008 to his name. He also beat then-world no. 1, Roger Federer, in three consecutive finals from 2006 to 2008.&nbsp; After a loss in the Round of 16 to Sweden's Robin Soderling in 2009, the Spaniard avenged this loss in the next French Open, defeating him in 2010 final. He went on to win five consecutive crowns from 2010 to 2014. But he was not done there.&nbsp; Nadal completed the La Decima (winning 10 titles) in 2017 and then won an unprecedented three more titles, making him the only tennis player male or female, to win 13 Grand Slams at a single major. He is also the only player to have three streaks of four consecutive titles at a Grand Slam.&nbsp; <h3>Fight of the Americas among the women</h3>Two women stars of their generation — Martina Navratilova and Chris Evert — dominated the Open Era of the Roland Garros in the initial years. Between 1979 to 1986, the American duo won seven of the eight available titles. Meanwhile, Evert has the record for the most titles — seven. Since 2008, no women's tennis player has won consecutive trophies, highlighting the competitiveness in the women's game at the French Open. The defending champion is Czech Republic's Barbora Krejcikova, but the onus will be on recently crowned world no. 1 Iga Swiatek to win her second title in three years.

The whole world is glued to their television sets when the major Grand Slams come around the corner.

French Open 2022: History of the clay-court battle as Rafael Nadal chases unprecedented glory

French Open legend Rafael Nadal is a household name in the Roland Garros whenever the Grand Slam comes around every year. Despite his injury concerns, the Spaniard is always considered a contender for the coveted trophy, having won the French Open Grand Slam a record 13 times.&nbsp; Having won the Australian Open earlier in the year will have surely boosted Nadal's confidence, but Indian tennis star Jeevan Nedunchezhiyan believes that the younger tennis players have gained a lot of confidence given Nadal's increasing age and injuries. "It's never easy, especially since he is getting older. Not just with the injuries, it's also to do with the next generation of players who are getting more confident. They actually believe that they can beat him on clay," Jeevan said during a media event.&nbsp; "He has never come into the Roland Garros with much fewer wins. The fact that he is getting older, his injuries are catching up, and the next generation truly believes that they have a legitimate shot at beating Rafa. It's going to be difficult. It's not easy, but for somebody who has won 21 Grand Slams, 13 of them coming at this particular one, it's very hard to write him off as not a favourite. That being said, it is never easy to win a grand slam," he added. When asked about the progress of Indian tennis, Jeevan stressed the point that the grassroots level of the game have to be developed at a much higher scale to reach the level of top tennis-playing nations, "Hopefully, when we have a good grassroots system in place to constantly keep producing players. We can then only have a conversation on whether Indian tennis is going to consistently churn out stars like Japanese tennis or American tennis.&nbsp; "Until we have a good system in place to create players, with the coaching and the infrastructure and the amount of exposure and support that they are getting, we can have such conversations when we have a system in place to create such players. Until then, we just need to celebrate the fact that there are a few players who are making it on the tour despite the current situation," the 33-year-old reiterated.&nbsp; <h3>WHERE TO WATCH</h3>Roland-Garros Morning and Evening Session at 2:30 pm &amp; 7:30 pm IST, on Sony Six, Sony Ten 2 (English), Sony Ten 3 (Hindi) and Sony Ten 4 (Tamil &amp; Telugu).

French Open legend Rafael Nadal is a household name in the Roland Garros whenever the Grand Slam comes around every year.

Indian tennis star Jeevan believes next gen getting more confident of defeating aging Rafael Nadal

14 French Open titles! The number is equivalent to the Grand Slam titles Pete Sampras has won throughout his career. Rafael Nadal has won just the French Open the same number of times as Sampras achieved in his whole career. Nadal’s 14 French Open titles is equal to Bjorn Borg, Rod Laver, Andre Agassi, Ivan Lendl, Pete Sampras, Boris Becker, Novak Djokovic and Roger Federer’s combined number of French Open wins in their career.&nbsp;The exhibition of Tennis that he put out in the French Open 2022 is proof that the greatness debate in the Fab 3 is heavily tilted towards Nadal. Yes, Federer did lay the original benchmark of dominance starting from 2003. Djokovic came out on top against the duo in most surfaces. But, Nadal’s consistency has been on another level altogether.&nbsp;&nbsp;The prime reason for Nadal being greater than Federer and Djokovic is multiple. In peak Federer, he never managed to get the better of Nadal at the French Open. On the other hand, Nadal ended the zenith of Federer on his own surface in Wimbledon in 2008. Unlike Djokovic, Nadal’s off-court antics and his demeanor make him less controversial. Djokovic, a legend on the court, has not covered himself in glory by his remarks against the coronavirus vaccination.&nbsp;&nbsp;<h3>Nadal settles G.O.A.T debate</h3>In many ways, Nadal has sealed the greatest debate due to the sheer value of his numbers. Nadal is the first individual to break down every aspect of Federer’s play on all surfaces. That is the prime reason why he has a positive head-to-head record against the Swiss maestro. His level of intensity against Djokovic is such that their head-to-head is almost even.&nbsp;When it comes to Grand Slams, Nadal is a clear winner on all fronts. He is level with Djokovic by winning all four Grand Slams twice in the Open Era. But, Nadal’s two Olympic golds and Davis Cup success is what makes his achievements greater. The only thing missing from his kitty is the year-ending ATP Championships. If he does that this year, then he would have achieved the career Super Grand Slam. The only other person to do this is Andre Agassi, but Agassi never won the doubles gold.&nbsp;&nbsp;Djokovic and Federer are lacking in some aspects. For example, Federer will always be haunted by the fact that his one French Open title in 2009 came when Nadal was dumped out in the fourth round. Had Nadal reached the final, Federer’s career Grand Slam dream might never have been achieved. Djokovic, on the other hand, has never won medals in the Olympics. When he was going for the Calendar Slam, he lost the Olympic gold and the Calendar slam.&nbsp;The win at Roland Garros, where he has just lost three games in the last 17 years, is a tribute to his consistency and ruthlessness. Add to this his injury woes in the last couple of years, basically playing on one leg, Nadal is truly the greatest. Beyond Federer and Djokovic.

14 French Open titles! The number is equivalent to the Grand Slam titles Pete Sampras has won throughout his career.

Rafael Nadal is greater than Roger Federer, Novak Djokovic after record 14th French Open title – Period

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WPL 2026

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RCB defeated UP Warriorz by nine wickets

Grace Harris’ smashed fastest half-century in WPL 2026.

Royal Challengers Bengaluru's captain Smriti Mandhana (L) and her teammate Grace Harris run between the wickets

WPL 2026: Grace Harris blasts 85 as RCB crush UP Warriorz by nine wickets

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Three WPL 2026 matches will likely to be played without spectators.

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Royal Challengers Bengaluru captain Smriti Mandhana with WPL Trophy 

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Gujarat Giants' Ashleigh Gardner (R) and Sophie Devine in this frame. (Getty)

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RCB defeated MI by three wickets in WPL 2026 opener.

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Ishant Sharma

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A Joburg Super Kings fan was hit by MI Cape Town opener Ryan Rickelton's shot.

Rickelton apologised and gave her a signed jersey in a heartwarming gesture. 

Ryan Rickelton

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