Roland Garros Men's Singles Final: Nadal’s records vs Ferrer’s form

The French Open has finally entered the ultimate stage, with just one match left to decide the Men’s Singles champion for the year 2013. The stage has been set to witness arguably one of the greatest French Open Men’s Singles Finals ever played. It’s the clash of two of the finest clay court tennis players in the current era, Rafael Nadal and David Ferrer, who will battle it out at Court Philippe Chatrier on 9^th June to earn the title of the 2013 French Open Men’s Singles champion.

Before the finals, taking a look at the players’ performance in the semi-finals speaks volumes about the players’ form. The semi-finals proved to be a major challenge for Nadal, who was up against Novak Djokovic, the current World No. 1. The match ended up being a five-set thriller, with Nadal battling hard against Djokovic’s consistency and accuracy, finally winning it 6-4, 3-6, 6-1, 6-7, 9-7. This Djokovic vs Nadal set-up was seen in many Grand Slam finals in the recent years, Djokovic having defeated Nadal in all except his sole French Open final, in 2012. Yesterday, in spite of the losses on hard courts, Nadal proved once again that he was invincible on clay, and transcended into the finals after defeating Djokovic. Ferrer, on the other hand, had a relatively comfortable semi-final, with an easy victory over Frenchman Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, winning it in straight sets 6-1, 7-6, 6-2, to make it to his first Grand Slam Final.

According to past records, of the 23 matches played by Nadal and Ferrer head to head, Nadal has won 20 and Ferrer has won 3. Of these, 16 have been played on clay and Nadal has won at every single instance. Thus, if we consider a purely statistical view, it clearly appears that Nadal would win, without any doubt. But considering Ferrer’s solid form, not having dropped a single set in the tournament so far, defeating him would definitely not a be cakewalk for Nadal. He is a tough fighter and a formidable opponent. Hence, predicting the outcome of the match isn’t going to be easy. The fight between the top two Spaniards is undoubtedly going to be tough. Only time and perseverance at the Final will tell who the real champion is.

If Nadal wins the match, it will be his 8^th French Open title, the 4^th consecutive one of the same, and his 12^th Grand Slam title, adding another one to his already achieved 56 career titles. If Ferrer wins, it will be his maiden French Open title as well as his first Grand Slam title to make it to his cabinet of 20 career titles. The odds are equally in favour of either player, though to many it may appear that Nadal would be the definite defending champion, considering his strong comeback after a long break of nearly eight months. But Ferrer’s current form may just turn out to be the game changer.

Nevertheless, both the Spaniards are in top shape, hungry for the title and ready to serve, and day 15 of French Open 2013 is something to watch out for!