Rafael Nadal Likely Never To Return To The French Championships After Loss To Alexander Zverev

Rafael Nadal’s amazing French Open career very likely came to an end as the 14-time champion suffered his first ever opening-round-defeat on Monday, losing to Alexander Zverev 6-3, 7-6 (5), 6-3 in one of the most anticipated first round matches in Grand Slam history.

The 27-year-old German became the first man to defeat Nadal before the fourth round at Roland-Garros and joined Robin Soderling and Novak Djokovic as the third man to defeat Nadal on the Parisian clay.

“To be honest I don’t know what to say,” Zverev said on court after his win, before handing the mic to the Spanish legend. “First of all, thank you Rafa, from all of the tennis world. It’s such a great honour. I’ve watched Rafa play all my childhood, and I was lucky enough to play Rafa when I became a pro, I was lucky enough to play him two times on this beautiful court.”

“Today is not my moment, it’s Rafa’s moment,” Zverev added.

Nadal, ranked No. 275 at the moment but using a No. 9 protected ranking to gain entry into the event, had never played Roland-Garros unseeded. He had also never lost consecutive matches on his beloved clay, but Zverev changed all that with a command performance.

“It’s true that the first round has not been an ideal one,” Nadal said after the match. “I had my chances but it was not enough against a great player like Sascha.”

As soon as the draw was made, the talk of the red dirt major was this highly-anticipated showdown since the Spaniard legend has indicated on multiple occasions that this year is likely to be his last season competing on the professional tennis circuit.

Zverev’s aggressive play set the tone in the first set. The two-time ATP Finals champion took the action to his opponent, hitting 15 winners compared to five for Nadal in the opener.

Nadal faced two break points early in the second set to fall into a deep deficit despite that chants of “Rafa! Rafa!” were heard in and outside the stadium. After digging out of trouble, he conjured memories of his very best tennis to claim a service break and lead by 3-2.

But his rival responded quickly with another break before claiming a tense tiebreak to take a two-set lead.

After Nadal missed a final shot on match point, Zverev gave a muted celebration out of respect for the 22-time major champion. They enjoyed a warm greeting at the net.

“The amount of feelings that I had on this amazing court during all my tennis career is just unbelievable,” Nadal said. “I never dreamed I would be here at almost 38 years old, with all the success I had here, winning so many times – it is something that I never dreamt of.

“For me, it’s difficult to say what will happen in the future. It’s a big percentage that I won’t be back at Roland-Garros, but I can’t say 100 per cent. I enjoy playing here, I like travelling with the family, and my body is feeling a little bit better than it did two months ago.”

Following the match, Nadal said it was doubtful he would make a return trip to Wimbledon, choosing to potentially play in the Olympics back at Roland Garros this summer, where he again can use his No. 9 protected ranking to gain entry and also potentially play doubles with his Spanish heir apparent Carlos Alcaraz.

Nadal has also been announced as a player on Team Europe at the Laver Cup in September.