Rafael Nadal Secures Place in History with French Open Championship
2022-06-07
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1Spain's Rafael Nadal won his 14th French Open championship over the weekend.
2It was his 22nd major tennis tournament victory of his career.
3The four major tennis tournaments are the Australian Open, the French Open, Wimbledon and the U.S. Open.
4A player wins the "grand slam" if they win all four tournaments in the same year.
5Nadal now has two more major wins than his rivals, Roger Federer of Switzerland and Novak Djokovic of Serbia.
6Nadal defeated Norway's Casper Ruud on Sunday in Paris.
7After his win, he said he may have to stop playing professional tennis because of foot pain.
8He said he had to receive pain-killing shots in his foot in order to play in the tournament.
9Nadal said he only accepted the pain-killing shots because the French Open is so important for him.
10At any other tournament, Nadal said, he would not have continued playing under such "extreme conditions."
11Nadal is 36 years old.
12He is the oldest-ever champion of the French Open, which began in 1925.
13Nadal said he could not feel his foot during Sunday's match.
14He is looking for other treatments that may help him keep playing.
15He said one possibility is to have a medical procedure that would "burn the nerve" that causes the pain.
16Howard Fendrich writes about tennis for the Associated Press.
17He called Nadal "indefatigable" -- someone who can do something for a very long time without becoming tired.
18Nadal played two four-hour matches in the tournament, including one against Djokovic, the world's top player.
19If the nerve treatments do not work, Nadal said he will have to think about "what's the next step in my future."
20He said, "I can't and I don't want to keep going" if he can only play using painkillers.
21He thanked his family and supporters, including a doctor, for helping him in Paris.
22Without the doctor, he said, he would have had to give up earlier.
23"I don't know what can happen in the future," Nadal said.
24"But I'm going to keep fighting to try and keep going."
25Fendrich described Nadal's play as "crisp and clean" on Sunday, noting he hit 21 more winning shots than Ruud and made 10 fewer mistakes.
26Nadal has never lost when he has made the French Open final.
27The next big tournament is Wimbledon, near London.
28It starts in three weeks.
29Those who follow tennis, like Fendrich, said it is unclear if Nadal will play.
30Nadal said tennis has been important in his life. He called it "a priority."
31However, he said it has not been more important than his own happiness.
32"If I am still able to be happy playing tennis ... I'm going to keep going. If I am not able, I'm going to do other (things)."
33Whatever happens, Fendrich said, Nadal's place in the sport's history is safe.
34I'm Dan Friedell.
1Spain's Rafael Nadal won his 14th French Open championship over the weekend. It was his 22nd major tennis tournament victory of his career. 2The four major tennis tournaments are the Australian Open, the French Open, Wimbledon and the U.S. Open. A player wins the "grand slam" if they win all four tournaments in the same year. 3Nadal now has two more major wins than his rivals, Roger Federer of Switzerland and Novak Djokovic of Serbia. 4Nadal defeated Norway's Casper Ruud on Sunday in Paris. After his win, he said he may have to stop playing professional tennis because of foot pain. He said he had to receive pain-killing shots in his foot in order to play in the tournament. 5Nadal said he only accepted the pain-killing shots because the French Open is so important for him. 6At any other tournament, Nadal said, he would not have continued playing under such "extreme conditions." 7Nadal is 36 years old. He is the oldest-ever champion of the French Open, which began in 1925. 8Nadal said he could not feel his foot during Sunday's match. He is looking for other treatments that may help him keep playing. He said one possibility is to have a medical procedure that would "burn the nerve" that causes the pain. 9Howard Fendrich writes about tennis for the Associated Press. He called Nadal "indefatigable" -- someone who can do something for a very long time without becoming tired. Nadal played two four-hour matches in the tournament, including one against Djokovic, the world's top player. 10If the nerve treatments do not work, Nadal said he will have to think about "what's the next step in my future." He said, "I can't and I don't want to keep going" if he can only play using painkillers. 11He thanked his family and supporters, including a doctor, for helping him in Paris. Without the doctor, he said, he would have had to give up earlier. 12"I don't know what can happen in the future," Nadal said. "But I'm going to keep fighting to try and keep going." 13Fendrich described Nadal's play as "crisp and clean" on Sunday, noting he hit 21 more winning shots than Ruud and made 10 fewer mistakes. 14Nadal has never lost when he has made the French Open final. 15The next big tournament is Wimbledon, near London. It starts in three weeks. Those who follow tennis, like Fendrich, said it is unclear if Nadal will play. 16Nadal said tennis has been important in his life. He called it "a priority." However, he said it has not been more important than his own happiness. 17"If I am still able to be happy playing tennis ... I'm going to keep going. If I am not able, I'm going to do other (things)." 18Whatever happens, Fendrich said, Nadal's place in the sport's history is safe. 19I'm Dan Friedell. 20Dan Friedell adapted this story for VOA Learning English based on reporting by the Associated Press. 21Write to us in the Comments Section and visit our Facebook page. 22Words in This Story 23tournament - n. a sports competition with a series of contests over a number of days or week where a winner is eventually named 24match- n. a sports competition or contest between two players or teams 25shot- n. the act of putting something like medicine into the body with a needle 26crisp- adj. clean, smooth or precise; skillful 27priority- n. the most important thing