It became more difficult this afternoon to see anyone other than Rafael Nadal winning the men’s singles at the French Open, after the most ruthless display by the Spanish “King of Clay” in his 12 years of competing here.
Nadal’s 6-0, 6-1, 6-0 victory in 1hr 30min against Nikoloz Basilashvili, the world No 63 of Georgia, was his best, in terms of games lost, in his 77 matches at Roland Garros. A historic tenth title here looks more likely by the day.
It took 49 minutes for Basilashvili to win his sole game of the third-round match, holding serve for 1-5 in the second set and receiving a loud cheer from the crowd on Court Philippe Chatrier in response. Nadal was ruthless, though, hardly giving his opponent an inch and comfortably closed out the match as the thunder roared overhead on this humid afternoon.
“I think I played great,” Nadal said. “I think at the beginning of the match he was not playing bad and I was able to produce winners, to play with no mistakes, to play very long. I had very high intensity in all the shots. It was a great match for me.”
Nadal turns 31 tomorrow and will spend his day on the practice court preparing for his last-16 encounter with compatriot Roberto Bautista Agut, the No 17 seed, before later joining family and friends to watch his beloved Real Madrid face Juventus in the Champions League final.
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“It will be a very close match,” Nadal said. “It is obvious that anything could happen. Juventus only conceded three goals in the whole Champions League. It is going to be so difficult. I think for Madrid it will be so important to score before Juventus, because defensively they are so strong. If Juventus scores before, then it is going to be tough.”
Andre Agassi, meanwhile, has revealed that he is not being paid for his new coaching role with Novak Djokovic. The American eight-times grand-slam champion is assisting the Serbian world No 2 here at Roland Garros, but has not put pen to paper on any form of a long-term commitment yet.
“I do it on my own time, I do it on my own dime, my own money,” Agassi told Eurosport. “I don’t want anything, I don’t need anything, I want to help him.
“If he wants me there [at Wimbledon], I will come and figure it out. It is a lot of responsibility. Whatever is practical and achievable, 100 per cent I will make the effort.
“I committed to him that as long as he feels like I can help him, I will. Does he really need me somewhere in particular, does he need me in a week off, does he need me in a grand slam? We will figure this out as we go. One hundred per cent I am committed to seeing him achieve what his dream is.”
