No. 10, 2022: Nadal wins his 14th Roland Garros—and finally feels the crowd love in Paris

As Rafael Nadal prepares to play what may be his final Roland Garros, we look back at the 10 matches that made him the undisputed King of Clay.

MATCH 10: 2022 Roland Garros, quarterfinal: Nadal d. Novak Djokovic, 6-2, 4-6, 6-2, 7-6 (4)

There’s no other place like this one for me.

“Without a doubt there’s no other place like this one for me; it’s the most important court of my career,” Rafael Nadal said after his four-set win over Novak Djokovic in the quarterfinals at Roland Garros last year.

It was hardly a surprise that Rafa showed his love for Court Philippe Chatrier. By the start of Roland Garros 2022, the stadium had been the site of 13 of his major titles, and a few days later it would play host to his 14th. But there was something about the way Rafa closed out this win over Djokovic that made it seem as if he was channeling all of the best tennis he’d played in Chatrier since he first set foot there in 2005.

For years, Nadal would roll into Paris on a tide of momentum that he had built up during the clay swing. That wasn’t true in 2022, when a cracked rib sidelined him for most of the spring. For the first time, he came to Roland Garros not having won any of tune-up events on dirt. And he was shakier than usual in Paris.

Against Felix Auger-Aliassime in the fourth round, and Djokovic in the quarters, Nadal’s playing level, confidence and fitness bounced up and down for three or four sets. Then, when he could see the finish line come up over the horizon, and see that getting there was within his reach, he played flawless tennis. The nerves and doubts were gone, the errors were replaced by winners, and he began constructing points like the chess master he has always been on clay.

Despite his age, his injuries, and his loss to Djokovic the year before, Rafa showed that nothing matters when the king walks onto his favorite clay court.

Yet there was one difference from the past in Chatrier. Before 2022, Rafa had not always felt the crowd love in Paris. The fans resented him for blocking their king, Roger Federer, from winning there. Maybe it was Rafa’s age; he was about to turn 36. Maybe it was the fact that, the previous year, Djokovic had handed him just his third defeat in more than 100 matches at Roland Garros, and that made him seem more human. Whatever the reason, last spring the French fans were fully behind the Spaniard in a way they hadn’t been before. The chants of “Ra-fa! Ra-fa!” grew louder as he galloped past his opponent down the homestretch.

“The feeling about playing in the most important place and the most special place personally in my tennis career, I feel the support of all the crowd is just something very difficult to describe, no?” Nadal said, while joking that they “probably know I’m not gonna be here [many] more times, no?”

This time, Nadal needed that help. For much of this match, it looked as if Djokovic would be the one who would ultimately find a way to gain the upper hand. That’s how it had gone when they faced off in the semifinals the previous year, and for the first two hours, this match unfolded along similar lines. Just as in 2021, Nadal struck first with his forehand and won the opening set. Just as in 2021, Djokovic dug in during the second set and wore Nadal down with a steady barrage of deep returns and penetrating ground strokes. By the end of the second set, Rafa was moving slowly between points, playing tentatively during them, and shaking his head in frustration at the Djokovic onslaught.

Unlike the year before, though, this time Djokovic couldn’t maintain that onslaught for long enough. He lost his rhythm to start the third set, while Nadal found a second wind and went on the offensive again. Still, Rafa’s roll didn’t last long, and Djokovic took command again, building a 5-2 lead in the fourth. Tennis fans around the world settled in for a fifth-set finish.

Then, just when the fourth seemed lost, a new self-assurance came over Nadal’s game. It started with defense, which helped him hold for 3-5. Then, with Djokovic serving for the set, Nadal hit a drop shot that the Serb didn’t run for. Rafa followed that up with a backhand winner, saved a set point with a backhand pass, rifled a forehand winner to reach break point, and finally broke, to thunderous cheers, with another forehand winner.

The more assured Nadal was, the shakier Djokovic became. In the fourth-set tiebreaker, Rafa started with two forehand winners and an excellent forehand approach to go up 3-0. Djokovic followed with a forehand long, a backhand wide, and a drop shot into the net to go down 6-1. Despite losing the next three points, Nadal finished with a confident backhand winner for the victory.

“He was just able to take his tennis to another level in those, particularly moments at the beginning of all sets, actually, except the fourth,” Djokovic said of Nadal. “He showed why he’s a great champion, you know staying there mentally tough and finishing the match the way he did.”

This was the 59th—and, as of this writing, most recent—meeting between Nadal and Djokovic; the Serb leads by the thinnest of margins, 30-29. The match itself never reached the heights of many of their classics, but Nadal’s performance did. Despite his age, his injuries, and his loss to Djokovic the year before, Rafa showed that nothing matters when the king walks onto his favorite clay court.