<p>Bengaluru: The French Open, the second Grand Slam of the calendar year, will kick off next Sunday at Roland Garros. The field is pregnant with myriad possibilities as Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner-led brigade takes one more firm stride in supplanting tennis' "Big Three" with only Novak Djokovic offering a spirited but ever-so-diminishing resistance of the old guard. But then that's the nature of the beast and few would have summed up this phenomenon better than Djokovic himself. </p>.<p>“The sport should outlive everyone, the sport will outlive everyone, and the sport is more important than anybody individually. So we are all here in the service of a sport as well," the Serbian legend said recently.</p>.<p>The sport, and in this case tennis, indeed will outlive its legends as newer generations of fans embrace younger generations of players. But sport will never be the same for those who inevitably develop greater affection for sportspersons than the sport itself. Formula One has never been the same once Michael Schumacher retired; sprint races don't have the same thrill that Usain Bolt generated while scorching the synthetic tracks across the world; golf has never been so avoidable for those who fell in love with it because of Tiger Woods; and tennis will never be the same for those who were fortunate enough to witness the greatest phase in the game -- the era of Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and Djokovic who between them have a staggering 66 Grand Slams. </p>.Djokovic lesson for Tomic.<p>While all of them completed career Slams, each one of them had his own favourite surface. Federer owned the hallowed turf of Wimbledon, Djokovic dominated the Australian Open like few have and Nadal remains the undisputed king of the Parisian clay. To put the Spaniard's grip in perspective -- Pete Sampras, one of all-time tennis greats, has 14 Slams in his illustrious career while Nadal has as many at Roland Garros alone. While he proved beyond a shadow of doubt that he was no one-surface bully as his eight other titles across three other Slams prove, his relationship with Coupe des Mousquetaires (the trophy given to the men's title winner at French Open) is the one of an enduring emotion. </p>.<p>For nearly two decades, it was difficult to separate the two entities. Nadal did miss his favourite Slam on a few occasions during his career owing to injuries, and while there was always a sense of emptiness because of his absence, there was also an eager anticipation about his return the following year. This year, though, it will be different. There will be that emptiness but there won't be any anticipation for there is a finality to his exit now. The Parisian crowd will never again see the familiar sight of the bandana, the sleeveless tee and the tireless sprints across the red clay -- that's gone now. Nadal played his final career match in November last, and as hard as that is to accept for fans, he himself has come to terms with it.</p>.<p>"The truth is that I don't miss tennis. Zero. I don't miss it at all," Nadal began. "But not because I finished tired of tennis or fighting against tennis, not at all. I finished my career happy and if I could have, I would have carried on, because I loved what I was doing. It was my passion and that's been the case all my life. It's just that when you realise that physically you can't do it any more... you try to close that chapter. And I closed it."</p>.<p>Despite a number of injuries that comfortably outnumber the titles he won at the French Open, Nadal carried on to make sure he didn't have to live in regret later. He wanted to walk away with nothing left in the tank.</p>.<p>"I delayed making my final decision because I needed time to be sure it was the right one," he noted. "What would have been hard was sitting on my sofa wondering if I should keep trying to play when I saw that my body wasn't going to recover to the level I needed to continue enjoying myself on court, then I made the decision to stop.</p>.<p>"That's why I don't miss it because I finished with the peace of mind of knowing that I'd given it my all, and that my body couldn't give any more."</p>.<p>Nadal, for sure, has moved on from tennis and surely he gave it his all. But he gave that much more when it came to the French Open which brought out the kind of primal combativeness in the southpaw. He didn't just defeat his opponents, he deflated them. He broke their spirit and left them physically drained. He was a storm in sneakers on the Paris clay and all-comers were blown away. A fit Nadal on court Philippe-Chatrier meant the opponents kissed good bye to the trophy. </p>.<p>This year's French Open will be the first of the post-Nadal era. And the tournament now has a dividing line: Before Rafa and After Rafa. He didn't have the aristocracy of Federer nor the versatility of Djokovic. But Nadal's mastery of the clay, endless energy and unwavering focus on the task made him an invincible force in Paris. If the French Open were to be a kingdom, he was its undisputed ruler. Not just by reign, but by right. </p>.<p>The sport will outlive Nadal. The tournament will outlive its most decorated champion. But for a generation of fans -- who watched Nadal rise and fall, fight and triumph year after year -- the French Open will never feel the same again! </p>.<p>Highlights - Nadal’s French Open titles 2005 Mariano Puerta (Argentina) 6–7(6–8), 6–3, 6–1, 7–5 2006 Roger Federer (Switzerland) 1–6, 6–1, 6–4, 7–6(7–4) 2007 Roger Federer (Switzerland) 6–3, 4–6, 6–3, 6–4 2008 Roger Federer (Switzerland) 6–1, 6–3, 6–0 2010 Robin Soderling (Sweden) 6–4, 6–2, 6–4 2011 Roger Federer (Switzerland) 7–5, 7–6(7–3), 5–7, 6–1 2012 Novak Djokovic (Serbia) 6–4, 6–3, 2–6, 7–5 2013 David Ferrer (Spain) 6–3, 6–2, 6–3 2014 Novak Djokovic (Serbia) 3–6, 7–5, 6–2, 6–4 2017 Stan Wawrinka (Switzerland) 6–2, 6–3, 6–1 2018 Dominic Thiem (Austria) 6–4, 6–3, 6–2 2019 Dominic Thiem (Austria) 6–3, 5–7, 6–1, 6–1 2020 Novak Djokovic (Serbia) 6–0, 6–2, 7–5 2022 Casper Ruud (Norway) 6–3, 6–3, 6–0 </p>
<p>Bengaluru: The French Open, the second Grand Slam of the calendar year, will kick off next Sunday at Roland Garros. The field is pregnant with myriad possibilities as Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner-led brigade takes one more firm stride in supplanting tennis' "Big Three" with only Novak Djokovic offering a spirited but ever-so-diminishing resistance of the old guard. But then that's the nature of the beast and few would have summed up this phenomenon better than Djokovic himself. </p>.<p>“The sport should outlive everyone, the sport will outlive everyone, and the sport is more important than anybody individually. So we are all here in the service of a sport as well," the Serbian legend said recently.</p>.<p>The sport, and in this case tennis, indeed will outlive its legends as newer generations of fans embrace younger generations of players. But sport will never be the same for those who inevitably develop greater affection for sportspersons than the sport itself. Formula One has never been the same once Michael Schumacher retired; sprint races don't have the same thrill that Usain Bolt generated while scorching the synthetic tracks across the world; golf has never been so avoidable for those who fell in love with it because of Tiger Woods; and tennis will never be the same for those who were fortunate enough to witness the greatest phase in the game -- the era of Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and Djokovic who between them have a staggering 66 Grand Slams. </p>.Djokovic lesson for Tomic.<p>While all of them completed career Slams, each one of them had his own favourite surface. Federer owned the hallowed turf of Wimbledon, Djokovic dominated the Australian Open like few have and Nadal remains the undisputed king of the Parisian clay. To put the Spaniard's grip in perspective -- Pete Sampras, one of all-time tennis greats, has 14 Slams in his illustrious career while Nadal has as many at Roland Garros alone. While he proved beyond a shadow of doubt that he was no one-surface bully as his eight other titles across three other Slams prove, his relationship with Coupe des Mousquetaires (the trophy given to the men's title winner at French Open) is the one of an enduring emotion. </p>.<p>For nearly two decades, it was difficult to separate the two entities. Nadal did miss his favourite Slam on a few occasions during his career owing to injuries, and while there was always a sense of emptiness because of his absence, there was also an eager anticipation about his return the following year. This year, though, it will be different. There will be that emptiness but there won't be any anticipation for there is a finality to his exit now. The Parisian crowd will never again see the familiar sight of the bandana, the sleeveless tee and the tireless sprints across the red clay -- that's gone now. Nadal played his final career match in November last, and as hard as that is to accept for fans, he himself has come to terms with it.</p>.<p>"The truth is that I don't miss tennis. Zero. I don't miss it at all," Nadal began. "But not because I finished tired of tennis or fighting against tennis, not at all. I finished my career happy and if I could have, I would have carried on, because I loved what I was doing. It was my passion and that's been the case all my life. It's just that when you realise that physically you can't do it any more... you try to close that chapter. And I closed it."</p>.<p>Despite a number of injuries that comfortably outnumber the titles he won at the French Open, Nadal carried on to make sure he didn't have to live in regret later. He wanted to walk away with nothing left in the tank.</p>.<p>"I delayed making my final decision because I needed time to be sure it was the right one," he noted. "What would have been hard was sitting on my sofa wondering if I should keep trying to play when I saw that my body wasn't going to recover to the level I needed to continue enjoying myself on court, then I made the decision to stop.</p>.<p>"That's why I don't miss it because I finished with the peace of mind of knowing that I'd given it my all, and that my body couldn't give any more."</p>.<p>Nadal, for sure, has moved on from tennis and surely he gave it his all. But he gave that much more when it came to the French Open which brought out the kind of primal combativeness in the southpaw. He didn't just defeat his opponents, he deflated them. He broke their spirit and left them physically drained. He was a storm in sneakers on the Paris clay and all-comers were blown away. A fit Nadal on court Philippe-Chatrier meant the opponents kissed good bye to the trophy. </p>.<p>This year's French Open will be the first of the post-Nadal era. And the tournament now has a dividing line: Before Rafa and After Rafa. He didn't have the aristocracy of Federer nor the versatility of Djokovic. But Nadal's mastery of the clay, endless energy and unwavering focus on the task made him an invincible force in Paris. If the French Open were to be a kingdom, he was its undisputed ruler. Not just by reign, but by right. </p>.<p>The sport will outlive Nadal. The tournament will outlive its most decorated champion. But for a generation of fans -- who watched Nadal rise and fall, fight and triumph year after year -- the French Open will never feel the same again! </p>.<p>Highlights - Nadal’s French Open titles 2005 Mariano Puerta (Argentina) 6–7(6–8), 6–3, 6–1, 7–5 2006 Roger Federer (Switzerland) 1–6, 6–1, 6–4, 7–6(7–4) 2007 Roger Federer (Switzerland) 6–3, 4–6, 6–3, 6–4 2008 Roger Federer (Switzerland) 6–1, 6–3, 6–0 2010 Robin Soderling (Sweden) 6–4, 6–2, 6–4 2011 Roger Federer (Switzerland) 7–5, 7–6(7–3), 5–7, 6–1 2012 Novak Djokovic (Serbia) 6–4, 6–3, 2–6, 7–5 2013 David Ferrer (Spain) 6–3, 6–2, 6–3 2014 Novak Djokovic (Serbia) 3–6, 7–5, 6–2, 6–4 2017 Stan Wawrinka (Switzerland) 6–2, 6–3, 6–1 2018 Dominic Thiem (Austria) 6–4, 6–3, 6–2 2019 Dominic Thiem (Austria) 6–3, 5–7, 6–1, 6–1 2020 Novak Djokovic (Serbia) 6–0, 6–2, 7–5 2022 Casper Ruud (Norway) 6–3, 6–3, 6–0 </p>