La Decima strikes again with Nadal’s historic French Open win and the race for GOAT rages on

Rafael Nadal won a historic 10th French Open title Sunday, beating Stanislas Wawrinka in straight sets. 

For tennis fans 2017 has been one amazing year, and it’s only half over!

We’ve had world favorite players Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal playing vintage, Renaissance tennis, combined with modernizations to their dominant form. We’ve had Federer’s new backhand and Nadal’s new mix and speed.

The year started out with both at the Australian Open final. Federer surprised all with a thrilling fifth set final, where he dug deep to come from behind and win five games in a row after 3-1 down. He clarified his GOAT status with what seemed an insurmountable 18th grand slam title.

Federer would continue his resurgence by collecting two more Masters 1000 titles at Indian Wells and Miami. The hard court season was all about the Swiss Maestro, who won a Grand Slam and two Masters 1000 titles. That was April. Federer then decided to take a break.

A lot can change in sport. And that’s exactly what happened once the clay season started. Nadal collected two more Masters 1000 titles himself at Monte Carlo and Madrid, in addition to his 10th title in Barcelona. If anyone wanted to write off Nadal last year while he was recuperating from his wrist injury, they would be eating their words at this point.

Once the Spaniard stepped onto his court at Roland Garros, the historic win was destiny. The tournament officials must have known it, having printed up flags that celebrated the 10th victory ahead of time.

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“Rafa, I have nothing to say about today,” said Wawrinka during the trophy presentation. “You were too good. You are a great example and it’s always been an honour to play against you”

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Tommy Robredo thinks Nadal would have more slam titles if more were played on clay:

Andy Roddick, always ready with a witty remark, doesn’t think it’s normal:

Roland Garros setting Rafa’s name in silver (shouldn’t they have an automatic stamper for him?). Or rather shouldn’t they just have his name on every line and just erase it if someone else just happens to win:

La Decima indeed from BBC Sport:

His beloved (and all of ours too) Uncle Tony presented him with the trophy:

Nadal now rightfully owns the second most Grand Slams on the men’s side, having surpassed Pete Sampras’s tally of 14. At 15 titles, the race is back on for #fedal. They are now tied this year with one grand slam a piece, and two Masters 1000 titles as well. Did anyone see this coming last summer, when both were struggling, nursing injuries and acting like the old men of tennis?

Both players have dominated on their preferred surfaces. Now it’s back to grass. If Federer was dominant in hard court season, Rafa was dominant on clay. Federer is back next week in Stuttgart. Both plan to play Wimbledon. It’s very conceivable they could face each other in a rematch of the greatest tennis match of all time, their 2009 final that ended with Nadal holding the Wimbledon trophy in darkness after a marathon match for the ages.

The 35-year-old Swiss and the 31-year-old Spaniard will be competing for grand slam number 16 and 19 at the All England Club in July. It’s also conceivable both players could wind up as world No. 1 and No. 2 by the end of the year. The race for tennis GOAT could be raging on all year long.

What a fascinating race it will be. 2017 is a truly great year for tennis.