Why Rafael Nadal will remain the greatest star of Roland Garros

As the tennis master bids an emotional goodbye to the sport, a new book takes stock of his wins on the clay court

- Arun Janardhan

When the Roland Garros, venue for the Grand Slam formerly known as the French Open, honoured Rafael Nadal earlier this week, it did so by unveiling a plaque on court with the player's footprint and signature. Court Philippe-Chatrier will bear Nadal's footprint forever, on its striking red clay, as a reminder to future generations how big these shoes are to fill.

In his new book The Warrior: Rafael Nadal and his Kingdom of Clay, Christopher Clarey reiterates that point repeatedly and with good reason. Nadal won 14 titles at this venue, a record that's widely considered unbeatable and twice the previous record number of seven by Chris Evert. During the course of these 14 titles over 20 years, he built a 112-4 win-loss record, and remained unbeaten in all 14 finals he contested.

Clarey's book therefore is not strictly a biography, which would have been expected of him after his previous work on Nadal's great rival, The Master: The Brilliant Career of Roger Federer, came out three years ago. This latest piece of work focuses on Nadal in the context of Roland Garros, driven by the sheer magnitude of the Spaniard's achievement at this event.

Clarey, a former contributor to The New York Times and The International Herald Tribune, personalises this one, unlike his previous work. Digging deep into his experience of covering sport for more than 30 years, Clarey had the fortune of watching Nadal—and following his career—from the time he started attracting attention on the senior men's tour from the early 2000s.

While the focus may be on Nadal's dominance on the red clay, Clarey sprinkles the book with brief histories of Nadal himself, his family, other Spanish stars who preceded him, the French tennis greats who gave the French Grand Slam its importance, of Chatrier, and of Clarey's own association with the tournament.