Rafael Nadal won his 11th French Open title on Sunday, beating out Austria’s Dominic Thiem and becoming the first man to win 11 titles at any Grand Slam tournament.

The 32-year-old Spaniard is only the second player to hold the record, after Margaret Court had won the Australian women’s singles title 11 times.

The top-seeded Nadal won the match 6-4, 6-3, 6-2 at Roland Garros in Paris against Thiem, a 24-year-old who is ranked No. 7. Thiem, who is the only man to beat Nadal on clay over the past two seasons, appeared for his first Grand Slam final.

Nadal had a brief moment of weakness in the first set, when the 24-year-old Austrian broke him in the third game. But after, the Spaniard was imperious. At 2-1 in the fourth set, Nadal stopped serving during a game because he couldn't straighten his left middle finger.

At the following changeover, Nadal was given a salt pill by a doctor and had his left forearm massaged by a trainer.

Sunday’s win was Nadal’s 17th major trophy, only putting him three behind Roger Federer.

Thiem beat Nadal on clay twice, including last month in Madrid that ended Nadal’s 21-match winning streak on clay and his streak of 50 straight sets won on his favorite surface.

The Associated Press contributed to this report. </s> PARIS — For a few, fleeting moments Sunday, Rafael Nadal found his French Open supremacy seemingly threatened by Dominic Thiem, a younger, talented opponent challenging him in the final for the second consecutive year.

A poor game from Nadal allowed Thiem to break him and even things at a set apiece. That development brought fans to their feet in Court Philippe Chatrier, roaring and clapping and, above all, wondering: Was this, now, a real contest? Could Thiem push Nadal more? Could he make this surge last? Would Nadal falter?

That the questions were raised at all was significant. The answers, perhaps not surprisingly, arrived swiftly. Nadal reasserted himself, as he usually does at Roland Garros, by grabbing 16 of the next 17 points and 12 of the remaining 14 games, pulling away to beat Thiem 6-3, 5-7, 6-1, 6-1 for his record-extending 12th championship at the French Open.

“I gave everything I had,” Thiem said. “It’s amazing: 12 times here. It’s unreal.”

No one in tennis ever has won any major tournament that many times. Then again, no one ever has been as suited for success on any of the sport’s surfaces as this 33-year-old Spaniard is on red clay: Nadal is 93-2 for his career at Roland Garros, winning four in a row from 2005-08, five in a row from 2010-14, and now three in a row.

Looking at the bigger picture, Nadal is now up to 18 Grand Slam trophies, moving within two of Roger Federer’s men’s record of 20.

Thiem, a 25-year-old Austrian who was seeded No. 4 and upset No. 1 Novak Djokovic in the semifinals, was eyeing his first major title in this rematch of the 2018 final in Paris. But again, he couldn’t solve Nadal.

“First thing that I want to say is congrats to Dominic. I feel sorry, because he deserves it here, too,” Nadal said during the trophy ceremony. “He has an unbelievable intensity.”

This one began on a cloudy afternoon, with the temperature in the low 60s (mid-teens Celsius) and only a slight breeze. In the initial game — interrupted briefly by a baby wailing in the stands, drawing a laugh from other spectators and prompting Nadal to back away from the baseline between serves — three of the five points lasted at least 11 strokes.

And, thereby, a pattern was established: By the end of the 3-hour, 1-minute match, a total of 46 points went 10 strokes or more. Each man claimed half.

Both men would station themselves along the baseline and sprint, scramble, slide, stretch to somehow reach just about each and every ball that came their way, not merely putting a racket on it but responding with a booming reply. It was an impressive display of athleticism, skill and will, with Thiem managing to give just as good as he got, particularly with his ferocious backhand.

From the get-go, it was such a physical grind that Nadal was soaked with sweat and changed neon yellow shirts after seven games and 45 minutes, eliciting some whistles and catcalls from the crowd.

Early on, there were no signs of fatigue for Thiem, even though he was competing for a fourth straight day, because of rain that jumbled the schedule. Nadal, meanwhile, entered Sunday having played just once in the previous four days.

Not only that, but while Nadal dismissed Federer with relative ease in a straight-set semifinal that concluded Friday, Thiem was forced to work overtime, eliminating Djokovic in a five-setter that wrapped up less than 24 hours before the final began.

Thiem showed he can play defense. Showed he can flip to offense in a blink. Showed power off both sides. Showed precision, too, making only three of the match’s first 12 unforced errors.

Indeed, it was Thiem who nosed ahead first, closing a 12-stroke exchange by ripping a forehand winner to earn the first break point of the final, then converting it with an overhead to cap a 20-stroke point for a 3-2 edge. He turned with a clenched right hand to face his guest box, where all of his supporters were on their feet, yelling and shaking fists, too, including his girlfriend, French tennis player Kristina Mladenovic, who won the women’s doubles championship earlier in the day on the same court.

Nadal snapped to, immediately. He grabbed 13 of the set’s last 18 points, and its final four games, doing so with elan, using a drop shot to help him break Thiem for a 5-3 lead, then a serve-and-volley to help hold for the set.

That must have been demoralizing for Thiem. How couldn’t it be?

To play as well as he did, for as long as he did, going toe-to-toe with — by any measure, objective or subjective — the greatest clay-court performer ever, and even taking the lead, yet end up with absolutely zero to show for it?

At the ensuing changeover, Thiem didn’t whack a ball toward the stands, as Roger Federer memorably did during his semifinal loss to Nadal. He didn’t spike a racket or kick a tennis ball. He casually sat in his gray sideline seat, bounced his legs and chewed on an energy bar, furtively glancing to his left at Nadal.

Perhaps Thiem was thinking: Is there anything I can do?

The answer, it turned out, was “Yes.” But only briefly.

They appeared headed for a tiebreaker in the second set when Thiem broke to take it. Talk about a stunning shift: Nadal had a run in which he took 25 of 26 points on his serve, before a loss of focus, perhaps, did him in. With spectators trading between-point chants of nicknames — “Ra-fa!” and “Do-mi!” — Nadal pushed a backhand long. That gave Thiem the first set he’d managed to steal from Nadal in four career meetings at Roland Garros.

But Thiem, put simply, wilted a bit. He made three unforced errors in the fourth set’s first game to get broken at love. Thiem created an opening and Nadal barged through. By now, Nadal was creating magic at the net, and he won the point on 23 of 27 times he went forward. One drop volley was spun so marvelously that it landed on Thiem’s side, then bounced back toward the net. All Thiem could do was watch — and offer an appreciative thumbs-up. </s> Eyeing a record 11th French Open title, “King of Clay” Rafael Nadal takes on his heir apparent, Dominic Thiem, in the men’s final at Roland Garros. Follow the action on our liveblog starting at 3pm Paris time.

A 10-time champion at Roland Garros, Nadal is bidding to tie Margaret Court’s all-time record of most titles won at a single Grand Slam. The 32-year-old Spaniard has never lost a final on the red clay of Paris. He is the hot favourite against Austria’s Thiem, 24, who has never before played in a Grand Slam final but who beat Nadal on clay earlier this year. </s> Stop if you've heard this before: Rafael Nadal is playing Dominic Thiem in the 2019 French Open final. The year has changed, but the names in the men's singles final remain the same as 2018 when Nadal topped Thiem in straight sets.

Nadal is seeking his 18th major title and record 12th French Open title. The "King of Clay" has won the last two French Opens and has dropped only one set in his six matches leading to Sunday's final. Nadal made quick work of 20-time Grand Slam singles champion Roger Federer in Friday's semi, beating the Swiss tennis star 6-3, 6-4, 6-2.

Last year's French Open final was the first Grand Slam final for a now 25-year-old Thiem. The Austrian native reached this year's final by winning a grueling five-set match over world No. 1 Novak Djokovic in a match that began on Friday and extended to Saturday morning due to weather. Thiem's quarterfinal match on Wednesday was also postponed until Thursday, meaning the tournaments No. 4 seed will be playing his fourth day in a row when he faces Nadal.

MORE: Watch the French Open live with fuboTV (7-day free trial)

Despite Nadal's rather easy win over Thiem last year at Roland Garros, Thiem does have a history of some success over the 33-year-old Nadal - some of it even on clay. Thiem is 4-8 overall in his career vs. Nadal and has beaten Nadal on European clay in each of the past three years. He last beat Nadal on clay in April in the semifinals of the Barcelona Open.

Australian Ashleigh Barty defeated Marketa Vondrousova in straight sets of the women's singles French Open final on Saturday to win her first Grand Slam singles title. She became the first Australian to win a singles title at Roland Garros since Margaret Court in 1973.

When is the Rafael Nadal vs. Dominic Thiem match?

The finals match between Nadal and Thiem is set to begin at 9 a.m.. Nadal will have had a over 36 hours of rest in advance of his title defense, whereas it will be the fourth straight day Thiem has had to play tennis. Thiem's coach Nicolas Massu asked tournament officials on Saturday to move the finals to Monday, but had his request denied.

The 2019 French Open final can be watched on NBC or streamed live on NBCSports.com and on the NBC Sports app, as well as fuboTV, which offers a free 7-day trial.

Refresh the page of click here if you don't see live results from the match. </s> In full control of the French Open final, a rather familiar position for him, Rafael Nadal suddenly was worried.

He led by two sets plus a break early in the third, when the middle finger on his racket-wielding left hand was cramping so badly he couldn't straighten it. After serving a fault, Nadal took the unusual step of heading to the sideline in the middle of a game.

"Tough moment," Nadal would say later. "I was very scared."

Up in the stands, Nadal's uncle Toni, his former coach, was nervous, too, "because I thought maybe we can have a problem," he said. "But in the end, it was not too difficult."

It rarely is for Nadal at a place he has lorded over the way no other man ever has at any Grand Slam tournament. Nadal dealt with that ultimately minor inconvenience and claimed his record-extending 11th French Open championship Sunday by displaying his foe-rattling excellence in a 6-4, 6-3, 6-2 victory over No. 7 seed Dominic Thiem.

"There is a reason why he won 11 times here," said Thiem, a 24-year-old Austrian appearing in his first major final. "It's definitely one of the best things somebody ever achieved in sport."

Thiem was on the couch, watching on TV, in 2005, when Nadal earned his first Grand Slam trophy in Paris at age 19. That began a run of four consecutive French Open triumphs through 2008. He added five straight from 2010-14 and now has two in a row.

Throw in three titles at the U.S. Open, two at Wimbledon and one at the Australian Open, and Nadal is up to 17 majors, second among men only to Roger Federer's 20. The two stars have combined to win the past six Slams.

The victory also allowed the 32-year-old Nadal to hold onto the No. 1 ranking, ahead of Federer.

If there were any reason for a bit of intrigue entering Sunday, it was this: Thiem beat Nadal on red clay at Rome in May 2017 and again at Madrid last month.

But those are not quite the same as the French Open, where Nadal is 86-2 for his career.

"I am sure you will win here in the next couple of years," Nadal told Thiem afterward.

Against many other opponents — maybe ANY other — Thiem would have made things interesting. He pounded huge serves that topped 135 mph (220 kph) — about 25 mph (40 kph) better than Nadal's fastest — and translated into seven aces but also had five double-faults. He took the biggest of big cuts on groundstrokes, his feet leaving the ground as he threw his whole body into them, as if the very outcome — not of any individual point, but the whole shebang — depended on the strength of that one whip of his white racket. That led to 34 winners (eight more than Nadal) but also 42 unforced errors (18 more than Nadal).

Until 4-all, 15-all in the opening set, to be precise. Nadal held for 5-4, and Thiem basically handed over the next game — and the set — with four mistakes. A volley into the net. A forehand wide. A forehand into the net. A forehand long.

Just like that, Nadal was off on a five-game burst to lead 3-0 in the second set.

By then, Nadal was finding his spots. One down-the-line forehand winner landed right at the baseline, leaving Thiem sagging his shoulders and muttering. Another forehand winner from Nadal found a corner, and Thiem yelled toward his coach.

It was a cloudy and steamy afternoon, with the temperature at 77 degrees (24 Celsius) and the humidity approaching 70 percent. Midway through the opening set, Nadal's aqua T-shirt was so soaked with sweat it stuck to him. Those conditions might have contributed to the cramping that affected Nadal about two hours into the final, at 2-1 in the third set.

"I was not able to move the hand, the finger," Nadal said. "I was not (in) control of my finger."

His uncle thought wrapping around Nadal's left forearm was too tight. When he first halted play, Nadal removed that tape, which he said let his circulation improve. At the following changeover, he was given a salt pill by a doctor and had his left forearm massaged by a trainer. After guzzling water during that break, Nadal felt better and was back to playing his unmistakable brand of nearly unbeatable clay-court tennis.

Shortly, he'd be holding the silver trophy, the one he knows so well, and crying.

A few hours earlier, as Nadal and Thiem warmed up, the booming voice of the announcer at Court Philippe Chatrier detailed the bona fides of both. Nadal's introduction included a year-by-year accounting of every time he'd already won the French Open.

The crowd responded at the mention of 2005, initially offering polite applause. It added more voices by the time 2008 rolled around. The crescendo rose to a full-throated roar for 2017.

Go ahead and 2018 to the lengthy list.

"If you tell me seven, eight years ago that I will be here … having this trophy with me again, I will tell you that is something almost impossible," Nadal said. "But here we are." </s> Rafael Nadal swept to an historic 12th Roland Garros title and 18th Grand Slam crown on Sunday with a 6-3, 5-7, 6-1, 6-1 victory over Austria’s Dominic Thiem.

The 33-year-old Spaniard becomes the first player, man or woman, to win the same Slam 12 times after seeing off a brave challenge from a weary Thiem in a repeat of the 2018 final.

Nadal is now just two behind Roger Federer’s all-time record of 20 majors and three ahead of Novak Djokovic who was knocked out by Thiem in the semi-finals.

The world number two also took his Paris record to an astonishing 93 wins and just two losses having previously won the title in 2005-2008, 2010-2014, 2017 and 2018.

“I want to say congratulations to Dominic. I feel sorry as he deserves to win it as well,” said Nadal.

“But he has every chance in the future. He has unbelievable talent for the sport and I want to encourage him for the future.

“It’s a dream to win again, an incredible moment. When I first played here in 2005 I never thought I would be still playing here in 2019.

Sunday’s triumph confirmed the ‘Big Three’ stranglehold on the Grand Slams having shared the last 10 between them.

It also gave Nadal an 82nd career title and 950th match win.

In a 53-minute first set of brutal hitting and raw physicality, it was Thiem who broke first for a 3-2 lead.

But the 25-year-old’s joy was short-lived as Nadal retrieved the break in the sixth game before racing away with the next three games to pocket the opener.

Thiem, who had beaten his opponent four times on clay in his career, failed to claim a single point off Nadal’s first five service games of the second set.

However, the dogged Austrian pushed and pushed, forced Nadal into three rushed groundstrokes and, from nowhere, broke to take the second set.

It was the first set he had managed to take off Nadal at Roland Garros after three previous defeats.

Nadal was riled by the insult.

He swept the first 10 points of the third set, carving out a double break for 3-0 before sweeping to a third break for the set.

Thiem, bidding to become just Austria’s second Grand Slam champion after Thomas Muster won in Paris in 1995, had played four successive days to reach Sunday’s final and the toll was slowly telling.

He wasted break points in the first and third games of the fourth set and Nadal pounced to stretch to 3-0.

That was soon 5-1 and the relentless barrage continued with Nadal taking the title on a second match point when Thiem fired a return long. </s> World No. 1 Rafael Nadal steamrolled past Dominic Thiem as he did the rest of competition this year and for over a decade, capturing an unprecedented 11th French Open title Sunday in Paris, 6-4 6-3 6-2.

The victory at Roland Garros raised Nadal's Grand Slam total to 17, just three behind Roger Federer's 20. The win also means Nadal will remain the top-ranked player in the world.

It was vintage Nadal from start to finish at Court Philippe Chatrier. The Spaniard ruthlessly demolished No.7-seed Thiem despite the 24-year-old Austrian hammering serves at 135 m.p.h. and taking more risks against the King of Clay. Nadal finished with 26 winners and just 24 unforced errors in the two-hour, 42-minute final.

On match point, the fifth championship point, Thiem's backhand return of serve went long, prompting Nadal to lift his arms and shake his head.

It was the second-straight time Nadal won the French Open in straight sets, having defeated Stan Wawrinka in the 2017 final. Five of Nadal's 11 titles were won in straight sets.

Nadal conceded that he suffered some physical issues in his left hand. The 32-year-old managed to battle through it and at one point removed the taping from his forearm.

“Tough moment in the third set when I got a little bit cramped on the hand,” Nadal said. “I was very scared.”

Both players praised each other after the match.

“What you did and what you are doing is one of the most outstanding things that any athlete is doing in any sport,” Thiem said to Nadal. Nadal called Thiem a great player and said he was "sure that you will win here soon." </s> French Open 2019 Final Live Streaming: After Dominic Thiem defeated the World No. 1 Novak Djokovic on Saturday over the course of two days by 6-2 3-6 7-5 5-7 7-5, he set a repeat of last year’s French Open final with the indomitable Rafael Nadal, who is on course to make three Roland Garros wins in a row.

The Spanish second seed Nadal has only dropped one set against David Goffin in a third-round clash, and has progressed to the final by defeating his years-long Swiss rival, Roger Federer in straight sets, 6-3 6-4 6-2. The King of Clay can become the first player to win 12 singles titles at one Grand Slam. While Nadal is seeking his 18th Grand Slam title, the Austrian fourth seed Dominic Thiem is seeking his first, hoping to better his best finish at a Grand Slam when he had reached the final last year on the Parisian clay. Although the heir apparent has beaten Nadal in three-set matches on the European clay swing in each of the past three years, the 33-year-old Spaniard leads the head-to-head record 8-4.

But whether Thiem can carry forward his momentum from his first ATP Masters 1000 title at Indian Wells, the tier of tournament below the Grand Slams, is there to be seen. Beating Novak Djokovic is one thing, but beating the maestro on his own backyard will be a whole new ball game altogether.

When and what time will Rafael Nadal vs Dominic Thiem French Open 2019 Men’s Final match take place?

The Rafael Nadal vs Dominic Thiem French Open 2019 Men’s Final match will take place on June 9, 6:30 PM IST.

Where will be the Rafael Nadal vs Dominic Thiem French Open 2019 Men’s Final be held?

The Rafael Nadal vs Dominic Thiem French Open 2019 Men’s Final will be held at the Stade Roland-Garros in Paris, France.

Which channel will telecast Rafael Nadal vs Dominic Thiem French Open 2019 Men’s Final match?

The Rafael Nadal vs Dominic Thiem French Open 2019 Men’s Final match will be aired live on Star Sports Select 1. The match will be live streamed on Hotstar.com. You can catch live scores, live updates and live commentary on IndianExpress.com. </s> Paris: Rafael Nadal admits that his desire to clinch an 11th French Open title on Sunday is fired by his growing realisation that the end of his career may not be too far away.

The 32-year-old Spaniard, with 16 majors to his name, will play his 24th Grand Slam final at Roland Garros against Dominic Thiem who is in his first.

Victory on Sunday will give Nadal an 11th title in Paris and equal Margaret Court's all-time record for wins at the same Slam event – in her case, the Australian Open from 1960 and 1973

Nadal still trails great rival Roger Federer by four major titles although the Swiss star is more than four years older.

"For me, the motivation to play here always is high, high as possible," said Nadal after breezing past Juan Martin del Potro 6-4, 6-1, 6-2 in Friday's semi-finals in what was his 85th win in Paris against just two defeats.

"But for me, I believe that there are limited chances in your career.

"I have lost a lot of opportunities through injuries, and I know the years are going quick. So there is not 10 more chances to keep playing here."

The statistics illustrate Nadal's concerns – he has missed at least eight Slam tournaments in his career through a legacy of wrist and knee problems.

Such is his motivation to win his 17th Grand Slam on Sunday, that the task facing Austrian 24-year-old Thiem was described as "almost impossible" by Del Potro.

"It is almost impossible to beat Rafa," said Del Potro who had his chances in the semi-final but failed to convert any of his seven break points before his challenge petered out into weary hopelessness.

Nadal raced away with 14 of the last 17 games.

"He's too strong. He's improving his backhand a lot. That's why he's the No. 1 and beating all the guys.

'He is fresh, healthy. Everything is perfect'

"He looks fresh. He is healthy. And the strength that he has and the mentality, everything is perfect, works perfect for him playing on clay."

There have, however, appeared to be one or two chinks in Nadal's armour at Roland Garros this year.

On Friday, del Potro was by far the better player in the first set while, in the quarter-finals, Diego Schwartzman won the first set.

It was the first time in three years that Nadal had dropped a set in Paris.

"You can win a set, but not a match against Rafa," said Del Potro keen not to over-egg any hint of weakness in Nadal's game.

At least Thiem has in the past found the key to unravelling the Nadal clay court enigma.

He is the only man to beat the world number one on clay in the last two years – in Madrid this spring and in Rome last year.

In Madrid, Thiem thrived in the quicker, higher altitude conditions to win their quarter-final in straight sets.

But that was only after Nadal had allowed him just two games in a last-eight mauling in Monte Carlo.

In Madrid, Thiem said the key was to be positive against Nadal.

"If I want to beat him, I have to play that way like I did in Rome and in Madrid. But I'm also aware that here it's tougher," said Thiem, the first Austrian in a major final since Thomas Muster won in Paris in 1995.

"He likes the conditions more here than in Madrid, for sure. Best of five is also a different story.

Nadal and Thiem have met nine times – all of them on clay.

Thiem also defeated his rival in Buenos Aires in 2016, joining Novak Djokovic and Gaston Gaudio as the only men to have beaten Nadal three times on clay.

However, Nadal has won both their clashes at Roland Garros – in 2014 and in last year's semi-finals by a comfortable 6-3, 6-4, 6-0 margin.

"I'm facing Rafa so I'm not the one who has the pressure," said Thiem.

Robin Soderling, who famously inflicted Nadal's first defeat at the French Open in 2009, insists Thiem has to take the initiative from the start.

"To beat him in five sets on clay is difficult. It has to be a player that plays extremely well," said the Swede.

"To beat him on clay, I would say the only chance for any player now is to be really aggressive."
Spaniard Rafael Nadal, who turned 33 this past Monday, defeats Austrian Dominic Thiem 6–3, 5–7, 6–1, 6–1 for his 12th French Open men's singles championship, and his 18th Grand Slam title.