[Archive 2018-06-13] Tennis: Nadal beats Thiem to win eleventh French Open title

Historical archive — originally published 2018-06-13. This report records what was known on that date. It is not current news; subsequent events may have changed the situation. Wikinews closed in May 2026.

On Sunday at the Roland Garros stadium in Paris, the "King of Clay" Rafael Nadal defeated Austrian tennis player Dominic Thiem 6–4 6–3 6–2 to claim his eleventh French Open title at the Philippe-Chatrier Court. Defending champion Nadal became the second athlete to win a particular Grand Slam event on eleven occasions, the first being Margaret Court at the Australian Open.

24-year-old Dominic Thiem was playing his first ever Grand Slam final while Nadal, who won his first French Open title in 2005 at the age of nineteen, had never lost a French Open final.

Thiem won the toss, choosing to receive the service. In the set lasting just over the one-hour mark, Thiem served two aces. The Austrian missed all four chances to win any of the net points, while Nadal won three out of four net points. Thiem committed three double faults in the set. In the second set, Thiem served three aces and committed just one double fault. Nadal won all but one net points in the second set lasting for 53 minutes. In the last set, Nadal broke Thiem's serve twice, and won all five net points in the set. The match lasted for two hours and 42 minutes.

Just like last year, Nadal did not drop a single set in the final. Last year, Nadal defeated Stan Wawrinka 6–2 6–3 6–1 in the final to win his tenth French Open. Nadal extended his record at the French Open to 86–2, losing just two matches in fourteen seasons on the French soil.

With this victory, Nadal now has seventeen Grand Slam titles. Only Roger Federer has three more titles than the Spaniard. Nadal is the only athlete to win a particular Grand Slam on eleven occasions in the open era.

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