Rafael Nadal on June 5, 2022, became the oldest player to win a Grand Slam title when he defeated Norway's Casper Rudd 6-3, 6-3 and 6-0 at Roland Garros.
With this victory, Nadal now has 22 Grand Slam titles to his name, 14 of which came at Roland Garros.
Nadal is closely followed by Switzerland's Roger Federer and Serbia's Novak Djokovic who have 20 titles each.
Next on the list is Pete Sampras with 14 Grand Slam titles.
There is an interesting story. When Sampras, in 2002, won his 14th title, many believed that this will remain a record for years to come.
This victory is even more special as it comes at the backdrop of Nadal's "would like to lose the final comment".
For those who don't know, Rafael Nadal suffers from Mueller-Weiss Syndrome.
This is a rare degenerative condition that affects bones in the feet and causes chronic pain.
The injury forced Nadal to miss a large chunk of action last year.
This syndrome affects the navicular bone on the back of the foot, between the talus and cuneiform bones.
So, after his semi-final opponent Alexander Zverev pulled out due to injury, granting Nadal a default victory, when reporters asked him what he would prefer- a victory in the finals or a new foot, Nadal said, "Without a doubt, I'd prefer to lose the final. My opinion does not change. A new foot would allow me to be happier in my daily life. Winning is very nice and gives you an adrenaline rush, but it's temporary and then you have to go on living. I have a life ahead of me and in the future, I would love to play sports with my friends. My happiness goes ahead of any title."
Meanwhile, Nadal's 22nd Grand Slam victory was widely celebrated.
Roland Garros took to Twitter to celebrate Nadal's win. They posted his picture holding the trophy and wrote "King in his castle"
King in his castle ?#RolandGarros pic.twitter.com/9g7vn6DJlT
— Roland-Garros (@rolandgarros) June 5, 2022
Other Tennis players also congratulated him. Stefanos Tsitsipas a Greek Tennis Player wrote on Twitter "Congratulations on your outstanding achievement@RafaelNadal! It just goes to show that hard work, passion, and a “never give up” attitude goes a long way. You have put your time, heart, and soul into this, and your perseverance made this #14."
Congratulations on your outstanding achievement @RafaelNadal!
It just goes to show that hard work, passion, and a “never give up” attitude really goes a long way. You have put your time, heart, and soul into this, and your perseverance made this #14. https://t.co/9oe3pfA054
— Stefanos Tsitsipas (@steftsitsipas) June 5, 2022
Former Tennis Players like Ivan Ljubicic, Roger Rasheed and former Indian Cricket Player Sachin Tendulkar also took Twitter to congratulate Nadal. Fans too filled Twitter with wishes for their favourite Tennis Player
