
 
 Rafael Nadal knows well just how it feels to celebrate on the clay at the French Open. (Julian Finney/Getty Images) 
 
 There really was never any doubt. The world’s rankings may have had Stan Wawrinka a notch ahead of Rafael Nadal, but the French Open at Roland Garros is the Spaniard’s playground, and Nadal had little trouble winning his 10th championship on the famed clay court as fans chanted, “Rafa! Rafa!” 
 
 “There is no one in the world who can make you feel more inadequate than Rafa Nadal on this court,” said NBC’s Mary Carillo, describing Nadal’s dominance. Wawrinka, the Swiss player ranked third in the world, had nothing in his arsenal to counteract Nadal’s attack. Nadal cruised in straight sets, winning 6-2, 6-3, 6-1. 
 
 .@RafaelNadal undefeated in RG finals, win 10th 6-2 6-3 6-1 Rafa reste invaincu en finale à Roland-Garros, et y remporte son 10e titre pic.twitter.com/ExlQKyIEpd — Roland-Garros (@rolandgarros) June 11, 2017 
 
 When it was over, Nadal collapsed onto the red clay. Then, he took a moment to weep into a towel, overwhelmed as he sat waiting for the trophy presentation. He addressed the crowd in French, then broke into Spanish as he became emotional. 
 
 “The feeling that I have here is impossible to describe and difficult to compare to other places,” he said in an English interview on the court. “For me, the nerves, the adrenaline that I feel when I play on this court, it’s impossible to compare to another feeling. For me it’s the most important event in my career without a doubt. Winning again here is something that I cannot describe.” 
 
 Almost immediately, Nadal’s team celebrated with a “#CHAMP10N” tweet. 
 
 The French Open victory, Nadal’s first at Roland Garros since 2014, is his 15th in a Grand Slam tournament, breaking a tie with Pete Sampras. Only Roger Federer, who beat Nadal in five sets in the Australian Open final in January, has more Grand Slam titles, at 18. He joins Sampras and Ken Rosewall as the only players to win Grand Slam titles in their teens, 20s and 30s. 
 
 The victory is particularly sweet for Nadal, who has overcome wrist and knee injuries over the past few years. “It’s true that 10 is a beautiful number, but actually my favorite is nine,” Nadal said before facing Wawrinka, the 2015 French Open winner. “For sure if it becomes 10 it will be my favorite. But the thing that I am more proud of in my career probably is 2013. It was amazing.” 
 
 When you realize tomorrow is Monday #FrenchOpen pic.twitter.com/XyHQ1F8Pzz — NBC Sports (@NBCSports) June 11, 2017 
 
 Nadal was sidelined for seven months between 2012 and 2013 because of the knee injury and a stomach virus. He returned, though, to win two Grand Slams — a feat he no doubt hopes he can repeat this year. 
 
 Now like Federer, who skipped the French Open to prepare for Wimbledon and the U.S. Open, Nadal will head for Wimbledon at the top of his game. Again. 
 
 “Every time you win a major you don’t know if it’s the last one and you know that,” Nadal told NBC’s John McEnroe. “Every one is so difficult. The only thing I do is work hard every day if my health allows me to do it and I know if I am healthy enough that I’m probably going to have my chances.” 

 Switzerland's Stan Wawrinka celebrates winning his semifinal match of the French Open tennis tournament against =bam in five sets 6-7 (6-8), 6-3, 5-7, 7-6 (7-3), 6-1, at the Roland Garros stadium, in... (Associated Press) 
 
 PARIS (AP) — Rafael Nadal acknowledged during the French Open that he's never been all that good with numbers. 
 
 "Math," he said, smiling as he turned his right thumb upside-down, "was the only subject that I failed in the last year that I had the chance to go to school." 
 
 Well, perhaps he should brush up. If Nadal beats Stan Wawrinka in the final at Roland Garros on Sunday, so much of the story would be about the statistics. 
 
 It would give Nadal his 10th French Open championship, more than any man or woman has won at any major tournament in the nearly half-century professional era. It also would raise Nadal's overall Grand Slam haul to 15, alone in second place and three away from the men's record of 18 held by his great rival Roger Federer. 
 
 After dismissing Dominic Thiem 6-3, 6-4, 6-0 in the semifinals Friday, Nadal was asked whether No. 10 would constitute his greatest achievement, especially given the wrist injuries he dealt with last season. Predictably, the 31-year-old Spaniard shrugged, then joked: "Nine or 10 — (it's) only 10 percent more." 
 
 Both Nadal and his uncle Toni, who has served as a mentor and coach since Rafael was 4, have been downplaying the significance of "La Decima" — which means "The 10th" in Spanish. 
 
 "Every time we come here, we just take one match at a time, we never think about the next title," Uncle Toni said. "But of course, if he wins Sunday, it will be very special, incredible." 
 
 Those last two words also aptly describe his nephew's path to this final. Not only has Nadal not conceded a set, he has dropped a total of only 29 games along the way. 
 
 "So far, so good," as Uncle Toni put it. 
 
 A couple of other numbers: Nadal is 78-2 for his career at Roland Garros, and 101-2 anywhere in best-of-five-set matches on red clay. 
 
 "To play Rafa on clay, in (the) French Open, in a final is probably the biggest challenge you can have in tennis. He's the best player ever on clay," said Wawrinka, who beat Novak Djokovic for the title at the 2015 French Open. "It's, for sure, going to be really difficult. But ... it's the final. The pressure is on both players. No one (can) go on the court thinking he has no pressure." 
 
 Nadal is 9-0 in French Open finals. 
 
 But he hasn't played in one since 2014, because he lost to Djokovic in the 2015 quarterfinals, then withdrew from the tournament before the third round last year due to an injured left wrist. 
 
 That wrist propels his intimidating, topspin-heavy forehand, which might be the best shot in the game when at its best. Another contender for that accolade: Wawrinka's flat one-handed backhand, which is so smooth and so dangerous. 
 
 Because 2015 French Open champion Wawrinka is a righty, and Nadal's a lefty, when Wawrinka hits his backhand cross-court — his preferred destination — it will wind up heading toward Nadal's forehand. 
 
 Quite a matchup. 
 
 It worked in Wawrinka's favor (as did his opponent's bad back at the time) when he beat Nadal in the 2014 Australian Open final. Wawrinka had lost all 12 earlier matches against Nadal; their series currently stands at 15-3. 
 
 After playing most of his career in his Swiss countryman Federer's considerable shadow, Wawrinka — at 32, the oldest men's finalist in Paris since 1973 — has blossomed lately. He is 3-0 in Grand Slam finals, beating Djokovic at the 2015 French Open and the 2016 U.S. Open. 
 
 "Stan is a big obstacle. But all the players are. He is a very good counter-attacker," Toni Nadal said. "He won all the finals he played in Grand Slams, and Rafael never lost a final here. Let's see who will be the first one to lose." 
 
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– Rafael Nadal won his record 10th French Open title Sunday, beating No. 3 Stan Wawrinka in straight sets as he continued his career-long dominance on clay courts. That he won his 10th French Open is no small stat, notes the AP: That is more than any man or woman has won at any major tournament in the nearly half-century professional era. It took the fourth-seeded Nadal just over two hours to win 6-2, 6-3, 6-1, with the Spaniard sealing it on his second match point when Wawrinka sliced a backhand volley into the net. Nadal did not drop a set all tournament on his way to his 15th Grand Slam title overall. Only Roger Federer has more, with 18, notes the Washington Post, which christens the 31-year-old Nadal the "king of clay."