Rafael Nadal

Nadal advances to third round at Roland Garros

The Spanish second seed, also looking to equal Roger Federer's men's record of 20 singles Grand Slam titles, was never bothered on court Philippe Chatrier.

World number three and US Open champion Dominic Thiem survived a third-set wobble to beat American qualifier Jack Sock 6-1 6-3 7-6.

The Austrian third seed has been beaten by Nadal in the last two Roland Garros finals.

And three-time Grand Slam champion Stan Wawrinka said he was ready to challenge for his second French Open title after a comfortable 6-3 6-2 3-6 6-1 win over German Dominik Koepfer.

Rafa cruises into second round at Roland Garros

The Spaniard, looking to equal Roger Federer's record of 20 Grand Slam men's singles titles, is used to slow starts at Roland Garros and this year's debut was no different.

On the revamped court Philippe Chatrier, whose roof stayed open throughout, Nadal converted all of his five break points to set up a meeting with American Mackenzie McDonald.

The second seed, who had complained about the new balls being too heavy, did not appear too bothered in front of some 200 fans, wrapping up the match with a service winner.

Federer wants ATP-WTA merger

Both the men's (ATP) and women's (WTA) professional games are suspended until at least mid-July due to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.

Swiss great Federer pondered the possibility of bringing both tours under the governance of a singular body with a post on Twitter.

"Just wondering am I the only one thinking that now is the time for men's and women's tennis to be united and come together as one?" Federer asked.

Federer: Nadal CT match is special

Swiss great Federer will face off against his most famous rival in the sixth edition of the Match for Africa series, organised by the 20-time grand slam winner's foundation.

Federer will team up with Microsoft owner Bill Gates to face Nadal and Daily Show host Trevor Noah, who was born in South Africa, for a doubles encounter before the two tennis greats meet in a singles match.

When planning to host the event in Cape Town, Federer only had one opponent in mind and said he had been trying to enlist Nadal's help for some time.

Federer ahead of Nadal at Wimbledon

Confirmation came from tournament organisers on Wednesday, after Nadal had pre-empted their announcement by speaking out to express his dissatisfaction at the move.

For the grass-court grand slam that starts next Monday, eight-time champion Federer will be the second seed and two-time winner Nadal the third seed, reversing their positions in the ATP standings.

Wimbledon formulates its men's singles seedings based on world rankings and grass-court results over the last two years, and on the latter basis Federer has a better record than the Spaniard.

Nadal not chasing Federer

Nadal brushed aside Dominic Thiem 6-4 6-3 6-2 on Court Philippe Chatrier to add to his record haul at Roland Garros.

The Spaniard will remain world number one rather than Federer following his latest triumph in Paris, where he became only the second player to triumph more than 10 times at the same major - Margaret Court being the other.

Nadal showed he still has a burning desire for success at the age of 32, but said he is not motivated by chasing down long-time rival Federer. 

Rafael Nadal beats Alexander Zverev to win Rome title for an eighth time

Nadal cruised to the first set before defending champion Zverev won nine of the next 11 games to take the second set 6-1 and lead 3-1 in the decider.

But the Spaniard turned the match around following a lengthy rain delay and closed out a 6-1 1-6 6-3 victory.

The win will see Nadal regain the world number one ranking before the French Open which starts next Sunday.

Roger Federer had regained top spot in the rankings when Nadal lost to Dominic Thiem at the Madrid Masters last week, his only defeat on clay this season.

Nadal to finish year as No.1

The 31-year-old Spaniard assured himself the world No.1 ranking by beating Hyeon Chung 7-5 6-3 in the second round of the Paris Masters.

The 16-time grand slam winner had not finished the year at the top since 2013, with Novak Djokovic and Andy Murray doing so after that.

"One year ago, for sure I never dreamed about being No.1 again at the end of the season," Nadal said.

Nadal's comeback from injury, loss of form and confidence, has been remarkable.

Federer relishing Nadal final

Nadal battled past Marin Cilic 7-5 7-6 (7-3) in Saturday's opening semi-final, before Federer fought back from a set down to overcome Juan Martin del Potro 3-6 6-3 6-3.

The Spaniard enjoys a 23-14 head-to-head record over his great foe although each of the last four meetings have gone the way of the Swiss, including this year's Australian Open and Miami Masters finals.

Rafael Nadal beats Novak Djokovic to reach Madrid Open final

The Spaniard, 30, won 6-2 6-4 to claim his first victory over the Serb since the 2014 French Open final.

Nadal improved his record on clay this year to 14-0 and will face Austrian Dominic Thiem, who beat Uruguay's Pablo Cuevas 6-4 6-4, in Sunday's final.

Kristina Mladenovic plays Simona Halep in Saturday's women's final.

Nadal confirmed his return to form with a long-awaited win over Djokovic, his 24th in 50 career meetings.