For two
weeks, the 2006 French Open was little more than a formality
as the tennis world eagerly watched its two best players –
Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal – advance
through each stage of the men’s draw. World number one
Federer was first up on the opening day of play, hungry to
add the only major title he has not claimed to his resume.
Defending champion Nadal, meanwhile, continued to distance
himself in the pages of history by notching win after win on
Europe’s red clay courts. Rafa’s first victory in Paris
allowed him to stand alone in the record books, surpassing
Argentine legend Guillermo Vilas as the man with the most
consecutive victories on clay courts. Yet Nadal was more
interested in standing alone at the close of the tournament
than the beginning. So onward Federer and Nadal marched,
each man equipped with an arsenal of weapons perfectly
suited to the demanding court surface, advancing towards the
most enticing head-on collision professional tennis has seen
since the height of the Agassi/Sampras era.
In general,
the French Open is considered the most unpredictable of
tennis’s four major events. Perhaps the anticipation of a
Federer-Nadal championship match diluted all other results
this year, but ultimately the full two weeks in Paris would
unfold with precious little drama. An injured Nadia
Petrova was dismissed in the women’s first round, which
was noteworthy considering her stellar results in smaller
tournaments early in the season; however, the upset happened
so quickly and emphatically that it hardly had time to
resonate throughout the tournament. To no one’s surprise,
Frenchwoman Amelie Mauresmo fell far short of her
number one seeding, nervously bowing out in the 4th
round of the tournament. The Americans provided occasional
glimmers of hope in the form of James Blake and
Venus Williams, but just when it seemed they could truly
contend, both players faded from view prematurely at the
hands of young phenoms Gael Monfils and Nicole
Vaidisova.
Gael Monfils
was one of a select few able to claim a bit of the spotlight
for himself. The young Frenchman delighted the home crowd
with an electric game and personality throughout his run to
the fourth round. Monfils repeatedly rebounded from
seemingly insurmountable odds and upset world number eight
Blake en route to meeting another up-and-coming player and
future rival, Novak Djokovic of Serbia and
Montenegro. The immature and brash Djokovic, who may be
more talented but is far less likeable than Monfils,
advanced to the quarterfinals before being stopped by Nadal.
Women’s hot prospect Nicole Vaidisova finally lived up to
the hype of being labeled “the next Maria Sharapova,” taking
out Mauresmo and Williams back-to-back, emphatically
announcing herself as a force to be reckoned with on the WTA
Tour. Vaidisova came agonizingly close to reaching the
final by playing precise, powerful, aggressive tennis. In
fact, she was outplaying Russia’s Svetlana Kuznetsova
in the semifinals until late in the second set. While
serving for the match, the magnitude of the opportunity
suddenly materialized in her consciousness. Vaidisova
nervously surrendered the chance to appear in her first
Grand Slam final, losing a second set tiebreak and falling
apart in the third set as Kuznetsova advanced to her first
major final since winning the 2004 U.S. Open. Svetlana’s
recent resurgence as a factor in the women’s game has been
satisfying, but in the Paris final she did not have enough
game to dethrone reigning champion Justine Henin-Hardenne.
Henin-Hardenne’s 6-4, 6-4 victory was more challenging than
previous finals she has played, but the triumph was nothing
short of fully expected. Justine Henin-Hardenne’s
versatility and measured aggression are a potent mix, a
combination that leaves her peerless on the red dirt of
Roland Garros. Justine has now taken three of the last four
women’s titles in Paris and five Grand Slam titles overall.
Perhaps the
most surprising thing about Roland Garros 2006 was the
overwhelming lack of surprises as the event progressed. For
the first time in two decades, the top four men’s seeds
advance to the semifinals, where number one Federer
dismissed number three David Nalbandian and number
two Nadal brushed aside fourth-seeded Ivan Ljubicic.
With both top seeds upholding their end of the bargain, the
dream final between Federer and Nadal was at last a
reality.
There was a
palpable buzz in Philippe-Chatrier Stadium as Federer and
Nadal made their way onto center court for the men’s
final. The stakes were high: a win for Roger Federer would
not only give him his first French Open championship and
complete his collection of major trophies, but would also
preserve his flawless record in Grand Slam finals and
further solidify his status as perhaps the greatest man to
play the game. Yet Raphael Nadal was the defending
champion, looking to continue his mind-blowing mastery of
Federer and claim his second career French Open while
extending his unbelievable unbeaten mark on clay.
Federer
seemed a man on a mission as he blistered Nadal in the
opening set, making the young Spaniard look slow and out of
sorts in taking a remarkable 5-0 lead. The weather
conditions were dry and warm, another factor that seemed to
favor Roger Federer. To pundits and fans alike, it seemed
that this would be Roger Federer’s moment. Rafael Nadal had
different ideas. After dropping the first set, Nadal hung
tough and stole some of Federer’s momentum in the second set
with an early break of service. An energized Nadal then
equaled Federer’s first set walloping with an impressive
display of shot making all his own. The next two sets would
be more competitive, but Raphael Nadal again proved
impervious to Roger Federer’s brilliance. Nadal claimed the
title with an amazing sixtieth consecutive clay court
triumph, a 1-6, 6-1, 6-4, 7-6 thriller that denied Federer’s
bid for history.
Now a
two-time champion, Rafael Nadal is unbeaten at Roland Garros.
Rest assured, however, that Nadal is not your usual surface
specialist. Watching Nadal’s fight and tremendous run to the
French Open title, one feels certain that he will be a
factor during the summer hardcourt season as well. It will
be interesting to see Roger Federer try and rise to the
challenge that Nadal presents, for he is too good a player
to let anyone dominate him as Nadal has thus far. It is
only a matter of time until Nadal and Federer are facing off
in Grand Slam finals on other surfaces as well, making their
rivalry as electric and unpredictable as all great rivalries
must be. Only one thing is certain: as both men continue to
accumulate the game’s biggest prizes, often at one another’s
expense, it will be to no one’s surprise.
Wyman Meers is a writer living
in New York. He is
Gaga4Gaby on the Outsports Discussion Board.
