PARIS (AP) — Rafael Nadal has captured his 22nd Grand Slam title and 14th French Open championship by whipping Casper Ruud, 6-3, 6-3, 6-0. At 36, Nadal is the oldest title winner in the history of the event.
Ruud had a 3-1 lead in the second set and didn’t win another game, with Nadal taking the last 11 and finishing with 37 winners with just 16 unforced errors.
But Nadal said his painful left foot was numbed by multiple injections to two nerves during the tournament. He admitted after the final that at any other tournament, he wouldn’t have continued playing under extreme physical conditions.
The foot has been bothering him for two years, yet he’s now threatening to complete a calendar Grand Slam.
Nadal said he will try some new treatments over the next week to see whether that might allow him to enter Wimbledon this month.
In other French Open news:
— Alexander Zverev says “it looks like” he tore “several lateral ligaments” in his right foot during his French Open semifinal against Nadal. The 25-year-old German hurt himself while chasing after a shot late in the second set against Nadal on Thursday. Zverev was taken off the court in a wheelchair, then returned on crutches to say he was retiring from the match.
