Federer praises ‘greatest rival’ Nadal on 13th Roland Garros win

NEW DELHI: Swiss maestro Roger Federer congratulated ‘greatest rival’ Rafael Nadal on winning his 13th Roland Garros title after defeating Novak Djokovic in the final on Sunday.

Nadal equalled Federer for the most major singles tennis championships won by a man and further added to his own record at Roland Garros on the red clay, courtesy of a surprisingly dominant 6-0, 6-2, 7-5 victory over the World number one Djokovic. Spaniard also marked his 100th match win at the clay-court major championship.

Taking to Twitter Federer shared a post which read, “I have always had the utmost respect for my friend Rafa as a person and as a champion. As my greatest rival over many years, I believe we have pushed each other to become better players. Therefore, it is a true honor for me to congratulate him on his 20th Grand Slam victory.”

“It is especially amazing that he has now won Roland Garros an incredible 13 times, which is one of the greatest achievements in sport. I also congratulate his team, because nobody can do this alone. I hope 20 is just another step on the continuing journey for both of us. Well done, Rafa. You deserve it,” it added. It was his 27th win over Djokovic and his first since May 2019 in the Internazionali BNL d’Italia final in Rome. The 34-yearold, who improves to a 22-4 record on the 2020 season, is now just one match win away from becoming the fourth player to record 1,000 career victories.