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If you think of Nadal, you think of Federer – and also of Roland Garros.
Nadal won the title there 14 times and has a permanent presence in steel form of a 3m tall statue.
Nadal selected 2006 and 2010 as his two favourite triumphs when speaking to the BBC before the clay-court major in 2015.
“2006 was a special one because I got a very important injury at the end of the year, [a very rare congenital condition in his left foot] and the doctors were not very positive about whether I would be able to be competitive again at the highest level,” he recalled.
“And obviously 2010, after losing in 2009, was very, very special.”
That fourth-round defeat by Sweden’s Robin Soderling was Nadal’s first loss in Paris. It was a stunning moment, a shock heard round the world, and one which only a select few can be party to.
The Nadal I encountered in interview rooms and player areas was always very personable. He would shake hands with the entire crew if the interview was on camera, and there would often be an embrace for the stenographers busily transcribing his thoughts.
We will miss the quizzical expression, and the raised left eyebrow, as he fielded questions.
We may not miss the slow play, but I am already nostalgic for Rafa’s routines.
The serve which followed the picking of his shorts; the lifting of his shirt from both shoulders; the squeezing of his nose and the running of his fingers through the sweaty hair above his ears.
And the two bottles which, after taking a sip from each, had to be replaced meticulously in exactly the same spot a few centimetres apart.
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