French Open: Nadal flexes his muscles

PARIS — A teenager brought his country's king to his feet yesterday at Roland Garros.

It happened in the fourth set of a thrilling French Open final, as Juan Carlos I of Spain, in a courtside seat, cast off any regal inhibition and jumped to his feet alongside awestruck tennis fans to reward the heroics of Rafael Nadal — who had just defied most notions of speed and human reflexes in fending off a critical set point — with a standing ovation.

But perhaps the most glowing tribute came later, from the man Nadal defeated, Argentine Mariano Puerta. Puerta played the match of his life before losing 6-7 (6-8), 6-3, 6-1, 7-5.

"I think we are talking about someone who is going to write a page in the history of tennis," the 26-year-old Puerta said of 19-year-old Nadal. "Personally, I think he's going to do beautiful things in tennis — like [Michael] Chang did in his own time, or [Andre] Agassi. He's going to become a legend of tennis."

Nadal became the youngest men's champion in a Grand Slam tournament since Chang won the French Open at 17 in 1989. Chang is a Mercer Island resident.

Nadal is the first man to win the French Open on his first attempt since Sweden's Mats Wilander in 1982.

With his first Grand Slam tournament title, Nadal improved his clay-court record this season to 38-2, vaulted to No. 3 in the world (behind Switzerland's Roger Federer and American Andy Roddick) and collected $1.075 million in prize money.

Nadal responded by falling flat on his back on the dusty, red clay of Philippe-Chatrier Court, then going into the stands to bury himself in the embrace of his mother, father and uncle Toni, who has devoted much of his life to coaching his strong-willed nephew.

Later, gazing at the silver Musketeer's Cup that is awarded the French Open victor, Nadal saw not only the reflection of the same teenager he was before the match but also a tennis player who had earned the right to be mentioned alongside the greats he watched on television as a child. And for the first time after winning a match, he buried his face in a towel and wept.

"To be on the same list as they are is a dream," Nadal said through a translator. "It's something you can't explain. These moments are moments when everything comes upon you. All the work you've been doing during all these years, the sacrifices. When you reach your goals, it's an extraordinary moment."

Nadal, seeded fourth, had emerged as the game's next sensation well before yesterday's match, collecting five clay-court titles entering Roland Garros. And he embellished that reputation throughout the Paris fortnight, toppling Federer in four sets in their much-hyped semifinal Friday.

The championship match, many predicted, was bound to be a letdown.

Surely unseeded Puerta, the tournament's unlikely finalist, would be spent after playing consecutive five-set matches to reach his first Grand Slam final. And quite likely Nadal's excellence would ebb after his victory over Federer.

But to the delight of the capacity crowd, the final was excellent.

Puerta endeared himself to fans by pushing Nadal to his limits despite having to call for a trainer after straining his right thigh 24 minutes into the match.

The fourth set was virtually a match of its own — lasting as long as Saturday's 62-minute women's final won by Justine Henin-Hardenne of Belgium over Mary Pierce of France.

Puerta had two set points, but Nadal fought him off.

"When I went off the court, I knew I had lost to the best player in the world on clay," Puerta said. "What could I do?"