French Open 2013: Rafael Nadal defeats David Ferrer to win record eighth title

“The King of Clay” Rafael Nadal takes on countryman David Ferrer in the French Open men`s singles final.

Zee Media Bureau

==================================================================================== Updates by Suyash Srivastava Follow Suyash Srivastava here on twitter: @Syu4u» ==================================================================================== Rafael Nadal defeated compatriot David Ferrer 6-3 6-2 6-3 to win his eighth French Open title. With this victory, Nadal now has 12 Grand Slams to his name, he is now level with Roy Emerson (12), two behind Pete Sampras (14) and five behind Roger Federer (17). UPDATES FROM THE MATCH: ==================================================================================== THIRD SET Nadal wins it 6-3 Nadal to serve for the set and the match, big moment this. Nadal’s backhand goes long, 0-15. Ferrer’s backhand landed slightly long, 15-15. Ferrer’s backhand once again goes long, 30-15. Good wide serve from Nadal and Ferrer’s return is wide again, 40-15, Two Match Points For Nadal And Uncle Tony Is On His Feet! Another wide serve from Nadal, Ferrer returns and moves to his left and Nadal fires another forehand to his right and that’s the historic moment – RAFAEL NADAL HAS WON HIS RECORD EIGHTH FRENCH OPEN TITLE! ==================================================================================== THIRD SET Nadal leads 5-3 Ferrer to serve. Nadal bamboozles Ferrer with his perfect forehand, 0-15. Nadal’s return goes long, 15-15. Ferrer brings his top shot, forehand into play and Nadal knew that was a winner the moment it was hit, 30-15. Nadal now brings his top forehand into play, 30-30. Ferrer’s forehand this time goes slightly long, 30-40, break point for Nadal! And Ferrer once again executes that perfect cross court forehand to bring the game to deuce, 40-40! Ferrer’s backhand goes long and Nadal gets another advantage, another break point! Double-fault by Ferrer at the crucial moment and Nadal breaks serve, wins the game. ==================================================================================== THIRD SET Nadal leads 4-3 Nadal to serve. Good rally between the two after which Rafa’s forehand goes wide, 0-15. Rafa wins the next point, 15-15. Another good rally which ended when Rafa’s backhand went long, 15-30. Little lack of concentration from Rafa in the last 15-20 minutes. Rafa wins the next point, 30-30. Good forehand from Ferrer, Rafa stretches, stumbles and his return hits the nets, 30-40. Break point for Ferrer! And he misses out on that one as his return goes long, deuce, 40-40. Good wide serve from Rafa and Ferrer’s return goes long, advantage Nadal. Ferrer’s forehand once again goes long, game Nadal! ==================================================================================== THIRD SET Scores level 3-3 Ferrer to serve. His forehand goes long, 0-15. Ferrer’s backhand goes wide this time, 0-30. Ferrer makes Rafa run to his left and thus Nadal has to stretch and his return hits the nets, 15-30. Ferrer shows some aggression once again and wins a point off a powerful forehand, 30-30. Rafa’s forehand from cross court goes wide, 40-15, game point for Ferrer. Rafa’s return hits the nets and Ferrer holds serve. ==================================================================================== THIRD SET Nadal leads 3-2 Nadal to serve. Good wide serve to begin with, Ferrer couldn’t reach out to that one, 15-0. Some more aggression from Ferrer who plays another top forehand to win a point, 15-15. Good serve from Rafa and Ferrer’s return goes way long, 30-15. Ferrer’s return once again goes long, 40-15. Rafa serves another express ace to seal the game. ==================================================================================== THIRD SET Scores level 2-2 Ferrer to serve. Rafa’s forehand goes long, 15-0. Ferrer shows some aggression, sends Rafa to his left and then replies back with another top cross court forehand, 30-0. And Ferrer seals another point with another forehand, 40-0. Three superb points for Ferrer. Good serve from Ferrer and Rafa’s return goes long, game Ferrer. ==================================================================================== THIRD SET Nadal leads 2-1 Nadal to serve. Ferrer wins the first point, 0-15. Double-fault by Nadal, his second of the match, 0-30. Ferrer shows some aggression and Rafa’s shot falls short, 0-40, and Ferrer has three break points! Wide serve from Rafa, Ferrer plays the forehand and Rafa replies back with a winner, 15-40. Rafa saves one, Ferrer has two more. Rafa’s return hits the nets and Ferrer breaks Nadal’s serve. ==================================================================================== THIRD SET Nadal leads 2-0 Ferrer to serve. Both the players win a point each, 15-15. Rafa makes Ferrer stretch to his left as a result of which Ferrer’s return goes wide. 15-30. Rafa wins another point, 15-40. Two break points for Rafa! Rafa comes to the nets and smashes a volley winner, break Ferrer’s serve! ==================================================================================== THIRD SET Nadal leads 1-0 Nadal to serve. He wins the first three points, 40-0. And he seals the game easily. ==================================================================================== SECOND SET Nadal wins it 6-2 Ferrer to serve to stay in the set. Nadal wins the first point, 0-15. Another double-fault by Ferrer, 0-30. Another double-fault by Ferrer, 0-40, three set points for Nadal! And Rafa wins the second set as well as Ferrer’s shot goes wide. Poor play from Ferrer in the game with two double-faults. Rafa is just a set away from his historic eighth French Open title. ==================================================================================== SECOND SET Nadal leads 5-2 Nadal to serve for the set. Ferrer advances to the nets and hits a volley winner, 0-15. Nadal bamboozles Ferrer with yet another express forehand, 15-15. Rafa’s shot goes way long, 15-30. Double-fault by Nadal, that gives Ferrer a couple of break points! Ferrer advances to the nets and hits a volley winner to break Nadal’s serve! ==================================================================================== SECOND SET Nadal leads 5-1 Ferrer to serve. Nadal wins the first two points, 0-30. Ferrer wins the next point, Ferrer 15-30. Ferrer was made to stretch on his left by Nadal and his return went wide, 15-40, two break points for Nadal! Ferrer saves the first one as Nadal’s backhand hits the nets, 30-40. Ferrer bamboozles Rafa with another top cross court forehand, deuce 40-40. Nadal takes the advantage as Ferrer’s backhand from cross court hits the nets. Ferrer wins the next point to bring the game back to deuce, 40-40. Ferrer’s backhand from the left hits the nets and Nadal gets the advantage and another break point. Nadal breaks Ferrer’s serve once again with a forehand winner. ==================================================================================== SECOND SET Nadal leads 4-1 Nadal to serve. Ferrer deceived Nadal with a drop shot as Rafa was moving to his left, 0-15. Ferrer plays another drop shot Nadal returns after which Ferrer smashes one to Rafa’s left for a winner, 0-30. Ferrer’s backhand hits the nets, 15-30. Ferrer executes a perfect cross court forehand, gets two break points! Rafa’s forehand wins him another point, 30-40, one more break point for Ferrer. Rafa once again dominates the proceedings with powerful shots and wins the point, deuce 40-40, saves two break points. Rafa plays a cross court forehand, gets the advantage. Rafa’s backhand goes wide, deuce again! Ferrer continues to return deep in the court as a result of which one of Rafa’s cross court forehand hits the nets, advantage Ferrer, another break point for him. Ferrer’s forehand goes long, deuce again! Ferrer gets on top of Rafa’s serve and smashes a forehand winner, takes the advantage and gets the fourth break point of the game! Another top rally, longest of the match and it came to an end after Ferrer was near the nets and Rafa played a superb backhand past him, deuce again. Ferrer once again tries to smash a forehand by getting on top of Rafa’s serve, finds the net this time, advantage Nadal. And Rafa seals the game with a backhand winner. He has done extremely well by saving four break points in the game. ==================================================================================== SECOND SET Nadal leads 3-1 Ferrer to serve. And his return went long, 0-15. Ferrer wins the next point, 15-15. Ferrer’s slice shot finds the net, 15-30. Rafa’s shot goes long, 30-30. Ferrer makes Rafa run on both sides after which his backhand goes long, 40-30. Rafa executes another top forehand as a return to Ferrer’s backhand slice, a winner, deuce 40-40. Ferrer smashes a perfect backhand and takes the advantage! Ferrer played a drop shot, Rafa returned, Ferrer played another shot which was lofted over his head by Rafa, Ferrer ran back and returned but Rafa delivered a volley winner, deuce again! Rafa wins the next point, takes the advantage. Rafa’s forehand this time goes wide, deuce again! Ferrer’s cross court backhand hits the nets, Nadal gets the advantage and another break point. Ferrer hits a series of quality forehands and one of them deceived Nadal, deuce again. Rafa once again came to the nets and then hit a volley into the nets, advantage Ferrer. Ferrer makes Rafa cover a lot of court and a backhand slice then hits the nets, game Ferrer! ==================================================================================== SECOND SET Nadal leads 3-0 Nadal to serve. Nadal wins the first two points to take the lead, 30-0. Another powerful forehand from Nadal who is now getting into his groove, 40-0. Good serve from Nadal and Ferrer’s return hits the nets, game Nadal. ==================================================================================== SECOND SET Nadal leads 2-0 Ferrer to serve. Nadal’s backhand hits the nets, 15-0. Ferrer’s return goes long, 15-15. Good serve by Ferrer who then advances to the nets and delivers a forehand winner, 30-15. Perfect backhand by Nadal, on Ferrer’s left and he doesn’t reach there, 30-30. And this time it’s a perfect Rafa forehand that gives him a break point! And once again Rafa seals the game with a perfect forehand, breaks Ferrer’s serve. ==================================================================================== SECOND SET Nadal leads 1-0 Nadal to serve. Nadal’s forehand hits the nets, 0-15. And guess what, Nadal’s forehand once again hits the nets, 0-30. Good wide serve from Nadal and Ferrer’s return is short, 15-30. Ferrer wins the next point, 30-30. Nadal’s backhand lands long, 30-40. Ferrer has a break point! Deuce as Ferrer’s shot hits the nets. Nadal takes the advantage, after which a powerful backhand from Ferrer brings the game back to deuce, 40-40! This time Ferrer’s backhand goes long, advantage Nadal. Ferrer advanced to the nets and tried a cross court backhand that hits the nets. ==================================================================================== FIRST SET Nadal wins it 6-3 Ferrer to serve to stay in the set. Nadal executes a backhand which gives him the lead, 0-15. Ferrer tries a drop shot that falls short, 0-30. Ferrer delivers a fine forehand cross court and Nadal doesn’t manage to return that one, 15-30. Another double-fault by Ferrer, 15-40. Two set points for Nadal! Ferrer’s slice shot hits the nets and Nadal wins the first set! ==================================================================================== FIRST SET Nadal leads 5-3 Nadal to serve. Ferrer plays a perfect forehand and wins the first point, 0-15. Nadal’s forehand made Ferrer run to his right and his return hit the nets, 15-15. Nadal’s backhand lands long, 15-30. Nadal wins the next two points to lead 40-30. Its deuce as Ferrer surprises Nadal with a backhand cross court, 40-40. Nadal’s return lands long as Ferrer came to the nets, advantage Ferrer! Nadal once again brings his unique forehand into play, deuce again! Terrific wide second serve from Nadal which also gives him the advantage! Nadal serves an ace and seals the game. ==================================================================================== FIRST SET Nadal leads 4-3 Ferrer to serve. Nadal played a drop shot, Ferrer advanced and smashed a forehand cross court winner. Double fault by Ferrer 15-15. Nadal brings his perfect forehand into play, Ferrer was a spectator there, 15-30. Ferrer came to the nets and Nadal returned which was received as a volley by Ferrer who missed it, 15-40. Two break points for Nadal! Ferrer saves the first one, one more opportunity for Nadal. Nadal’s backhand went wide, deuce, 40-40. Ferrer has done well to save two break points. Ferrer’s forehand went long, advantage Nadal, Ferrer wasn’t too happy there. Nadal plays an excellent winner where Ferrer came to the nets and Nadal’s backhand whistled past him. Nadal breaks Ferrer’s serve, again! ==================================================================================== FIRST SET Scores level 3-3 Nadal to serve. Nadal advanced to the nets as a result of which Ferrer’s backhand found the nets, 15-0. Ferrer’s return lands long, 30-0. Good serve from Nadal and Ferrer’s return goes long, 40-0. Ferrer created some chances in that point but Nadal finally wins it as Ferrer’s shot once again hits the nets. ==================================================================================== FIRST SET Ferrer leads 3-2 Ferrer to serve. Nadal’s forehand goes wide, 15-0. Ferrer’s forehand goes wide on the cross court, 15-15. Another good rally but it came to an end when Ferrer’s backhand hit the nets, 15-30. Nadal’s forehand lands long, something we don’t see often, 30-30. Ferrer makes Nadal run on both the sides and Nadal’s return goes wide, 40-30. Nadal’s backhand clips the nets and doesn’t cross, Ferrer holds his serve. ==================================================================================== FIRST SET Scores level 2-2 Nadal to serve. Takes the lead by winning the first point, 15-0. Ferrer’s backhand once again hits the nets, 30-0. Nadal’s backhand lands wide, 30-15. Nadal’s backhand once again lands wide, 30-30. Some good return shots by Ferrer in the game so far. Nadal went to the corner of the court on his left and then his forehand went wide again, 30-40! Break point for Ferrer! Good deep serve and Ferrer’s return landed long, deuce, 40-40. Another good rally between the two, Ferrer played a drop shot, Nadal chased it and then Ferrer smashed a backhand winner to Nadal’s left, advantage Ferrer! Rally of the match so far, Nadal’s shot hits the nets and Ferrer breaks Nadal’s serve! ==================================================================================== FIRST SET Nadal leads 2-1 Ferrer to serve. Another good rally between the two and Nadal wins the first point, 0-15. Nadal attempted a slice shot which hit the nets, 15-15. Ferrer’s backhand went wide after a good rally, 15-30. Ferre’s backhand once again goes long, 15-40, two break points for Nadal! And he had enough court to smash the forehand which still went wide, Nadal breaks the serve! ==================================================================================== FIRST SET Scores level 1-1 Nadal to serve. Nadal begins with a good serve and Ferrer’s return lands wide, 15-0. Another wide serve from Nadal and Ferrer’s return goes long, 30-0. Top rally between the two Spanish players and it ended when Nadal played a perfect drop shot, 40-0. Nadal wins the next point, 40-15. Ferrer’s return lands long, game Nadal. ==================================================================================== FIRST SET Ferrer leads 1-0 Ferrer to serve. He won the first three points to lead 40-0 and then sealed the game with an ace. ==================================================================================== For those who don't know, the winner of today's match will be handed over the trophy by Usain Bolt. Read full PREVIEW» “The King of Clay” Rafael Nadal is eyeing his eighth French Open title. He is up against his countryman David Ferrer who is yet to win a Grand Slam title. Even though Nadal has a 19-4 record against Ferrer, his respect for the veteran is well known and he wouldn’t be complacent against Ferrer who hasn’t lost a set in the tournament so far. Many thought Nadal won’t be able to make it to the finals after the injury that kept him away from Tennis for almost seven months. But keeping in mind the champion he is, Nadal made his critics eat their own words. He was at his best against World No.1 Novak Djokovic in the semi-final which he won 6-4, 3-6, 6-1, 6-7 (3-7), 9-7. It was another thriller between the two champions but Djokovic once again wasn’t up to the mark against Rafa on clay! Ferrer on the other hand has loads of experience with him but it is surprising to know that this is his first appearance in a Grand Slam final. Ferrer has played some quality tennis right throughout the tournament and he outclassed Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, 6-1, 7-6 (3), 6-2 in the semis. Ferrer`s only victory on clay against Nadal came in 2004. Only if he can stop Rafa’s incredible dominance on clay, he would probably be remembered as the man who dethroned Nadal on clay and this one title could do wonders for him. Rafa has high regards for the 31-year-old as he said, "Anyone who does not respect David as one of the greatest players in the world – and not for one year, but for a long time – that person doesn`t know anything about tennis." Both the players have enormous respect for each other and while Nadal is the clear favorite, Ferrer would play his heart out after reaching a Grand Slam final. This could be his only chance to win one.