Lorenzo Musetti may have won his first-round match at the French Open yesterday, but few were really clamouring to Philippe Chatrier to see him.
After all, despite his play style capturing the attention following a strong clay-court season, even he knew who the people were really there to see.
Anyone who had managed to snag tickets onto that court for that day was there for Rafael Nadal.
Roland Garros had long planned to honour the legendary Spaniard, seeking to welcome him back following the day session’s end.
Unfortunately for Musetti, he was the barrier between the tennis and the true spectacle of the day.
Lorenzo Musetti recalls his Roland Garros memory of Rafa Nadal
Speaking to the media after his impressive first-round win over Yannick Hanfmann, naturally, many were somewhat distracted.
After all, whilst it was a very comprehensive straight-sets triumph, he knew what people were cramming into Philippe Chatrier to see Nadal’s tribute ceremony directly followed the conclusion of his match.
So, offering up his memories of the Spaniard, who he actually never faced in an official match, the Italian recalled: ‘I played once against him in practice. I was practising with him here at Roland Garros. I think I lost the set like 6-1 or 6-0. I was pretty scared about how he was playing. I was like 18 or 19. I think it was my first Roland Garros. It was such an honour for me to share the court with him. But I remember there were really nice words from him to me when I won my first ATP match in Rome against Wawrinka.
‘The day after, I was practising. He said something in Spanish like ‘Congratulations it was a nice match.’ I was even like shaking. It was really nice to be the match that was before his ceremony today.’
Then, in his own press conference after the ceremony, Nadal revealed his plans to play exhibition matches in the future.
Rafael Nadal scared plenty of players at the French Open
It’s unique for a tennis player to have such an aura around them that they almost become unbeatable at a particular tournament or surface.
However, for Nadal, this became commonplace.
Roland Garros was of course his playground, but on almost any clay-court event he was the overwhelming favourite, a notion which he comfortably lived up to given his record on the dirt.
He won a record 63 ATP titles on clay, playing 535 matches on the surface, with a record 484 wins and 51 defeats (90.5% win rate)
Even before retirement, many suggested that facing Nadal at the French Open was the hardest task in any sport. There are not many who would argue that notion.
After all, a record of 112 wins and just four losses across 19 years, at one of the most prestigious tournaments in tennis, is simply unimaginable.
Musetti was right to be scared all those years ago.
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