Nadal enjoys triumph: “I play tennis because I love it”

“I actually always try to keep my emotions under control. But at that moment it was impossible. That was unforgettable,” said Nadal.

Previously, on Sunday (local time) he beat the Russian Daniil Medvedev in a high-class and dramatic final of the US Open in 4:51 hours Defeated 7:5, 6:3, 5:7, 4:6, 6:4 and thus celebrated his 19th Grand Slam title. Only the Swiss Roger Federer has so far won one of the four most important tournaments in the world, Novak Djokovic is just behind with 16 titles.

But Nadal wanted nothing to do with the hunt for records after this epic final in the third-longest final in the history of the Flushing Meadows classic. “I don't think about that at all. That's why I don't stand on the training ground every day and that's why I don't play tennis. I play tennis because I love it,” said the 33-year-old Mallorcan.

The 23 spectators in the stadium and the millions of fans in front of the screens in New York got to see how much. With Medvedev, 771 years young and extremely self-confident after an impressive winning streak this summer, Nadal faced one of the most uncomfortable and dangerous opponents in the final. The Russian belongs to the group of up-and-coming players that the ATP likes to market as the next generation.

Medvedev: “These three are legends” Medvedev, Alexander Zverev, Stefanos Tsitsipas – they will soon replace the three big superstars Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic. At least that's what the bosses of the men's tour plan. But the big three still have too much fun with what they do and continue to push each other to achieve top performance. “These three, they are legends,” Medvedev said in awe. “It’s so damn hard to beat them, even just win a set, sometimes even just win a game against them.”

The winner of the last twelve Grand Slam tournaments was always either Djokovic, Nadal or Federer. For three long years no one was able to break into this phalanx. The last champion who did not come from the big three was the Swiss Stan Wawrinka at the US Open 2016.

On Sunday his name was almost Medvedev. Because after Nadal was heading relatively unspectacularly for his fourth triumph at the US Open for two and a half sets, the Russian suddenly began to play all or nothing. “In the third set I was already thinking about what I would say at the award ceremony as a loser,” said Medvedev after the game. “But the fans supported me so loudly that I just kept fighting for every point.”

As if out of nowhere, Medvedev won the third round and then even forced Nadal into the deciding set. The fans went wild, Nadal wobbled. The Spaniard had to accept several penalties for time play, but that was exactly what gave him the energy to turn things around. With the third match point he made everything clear and then fell to the ground, completely exhausted.

Once again he had fended off the attack of one of the young savages. “I feel honored to have been part of this battle,” said Nadal. In the women's event on Saturday, 19-year-old Canadian Bianca Andreescu won against 37-year-old Serena Williams. Andreescu is the first player born this millennium to win a Grand Slam tournament. For the men, however, the changing of the guard will have to wait a little longer. Nadal on Medvedev: “The future belongs to him” Which was certainly fine with the planners of the award ceremony in New York, as Medvedev also suspected. "When I saw the pictures of Rafa's 19 Grand Slam titles on the big video cube, I thought: If I had won, what would they have shown?" asked the Russian. If he continues to play like this, there will be enough material for highlight clips about him in the future. “The future belongs to him. “I’m sure he has a chance to win some Grand Slams,” Nadal said.

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Nadal enjoys triumph: “I play tennis because I love it”

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