5 Memorable Matches at Roland Garros

The 2018 French Open looks set to be an exciting one with Serena Williams and Maria Sharapova making a comeback; Rafael Nadal still dominating the clay courts like it is nobody's business, and players like Wawrinka and Thiem ready to give him a run for his money.

The Grand Slams give us plenty of moments to cherish – some are joyous, some are heart-breaking and others are nail-biting.

It is a delight to relive these moments. So let us go back in time and reminiscence some of the unforgettable moments of the French Open:

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#1 Yannick Noah vs Mats Wilander, Final, 1983

Noah vs. Wilander

Yannick Noah was a 23-year-old from France and the entire nation's hopes rested on his shoulders as there had been no French winner at Roland Garros since 1946.

Noah's opponent in the final was Mats Wilander. Wilander was the defending champion and the more superior player, and the odds were in Wilander's favour. But, Noah with his athleticism, charisma and a little help from the partisan French crowd overcame Mats Wilander 6-2, 7-5, 7-6. He played with his trademark style of diving, lunging and rolling on the court.

It was an inspiring and emotional match for everyone in the stadium, and the crowd, along with Noah's father, went berserk and came on to the court. It is still a memorable victory as no Frenchman has won the title after him.

Here are the highlights of this match -

#2 Michael Chang vs Ivan Lendl, Fourth Round, 1989

Michael Chang

Michael Chang was just 17 when he took on the mighty Ivan Lendl in the fourth round of the French Open in 1989. Lendl won the first two sets easily 6-4, 6-4. Chang managed to win the third set, and pushed the match into the decider by winning the fourth set.

By then he had a severe case of cramping and was dehydrated. He even thought of quitting in the final set. But he dug deep into his energy reserves and rallied on with different techniques to win the last set 6-3, thus causing a major upset.

Tennis fans of that era still remember the unexpected underhand serve that Chang hit when he was trailing 15-30 in a crucial game. Lendl was totally confused and hit a very poor return ultimately losing the point. He used other techniques like lobs and receiving serves from the service line to throw Lendl off his rhythm. It was a memorable match as it had all the characteristics of a classic David and Goliath story.

Chang went on to win the title that year and became the youngest man to win a Grand Slam title. His win was a big boost for US tennis too, which had not seen any male Grand Slam winner for the previous five years.

Here are the highlights of the last two sets of this amazing match -

#3 Arantxa Sanchez Vicario vs. Steffi Graf, Finals, 1989

Arantxa Sanchez Vicario and Steffi Graf

At the age of 17, Arantxa Sanchez Vicario defeated tennis legend, Steffi Graf, to win her first Grand Slam title. She also became the first Spanish woman to win the French Open. Sanchez won the first set even though she was behind at 2-4 in the tie-break. and Graf squared it by winning the second one. Graf led 5-3 in the final set.

But Sanchez was determined to win, and with her agility and a never-say-die attitude, she raced ahead by breaking Graf at love and then won the match with the score of 7-6, 3-6, 7-5. It started off a great rivalry between the two, and the win put her in the spotlight.

You can have a look at some great moments of the match here -

#4 Rafael Nadal vs. Roger Federer, Semi-final, 2005

Rafael Nadal

The epic rivalry between Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal was kicked off in this match, and it was the first time they met in a Grand Slam tournament. Their head-to-head record was 1-1 before this match.

This was as much a battle of the minds as a physical one. Nadal was a favourite to win the tournament considering the spectacular record he had till then. Federer was World No. 1, looking to win the only Grand Slam that had evaded him till then.

But Nadal was in good form and Federer made too many unforced errors. Nadal broke Federer's serve nine times and went on to defeat Federer 6-3, 4-6, 6-4, 6-3 in a riveting semi-final match. It was a perfect way for Nadal to celebrate his 19th birthday. It was also one of those rare matches where Federer had some emotional outbursts!

His forehand also did not unleash hell like it usually does. He hit too many of them long. Nadal sealed his victory when Federer hit a forehand long in the last point. Nadal went on to win the championship that year and added nine more to his kitty.

Check out the highlights here -

#5 Rafael Nadal vs Novak Djokovic, Semi-final, 2013

Nadal vs. Djokovic

The match had all the makings of a classic. It was a contest between two tournament favourites. Nadal was looking to enter his first Grand Slam final after being out with a serious knee injury. Djokovic wanted to win his first French Open.

It was a marathon of a match and looked to go either way as each of them dominated the match at different times. The rallies were long, the shots were fierce and the level of the game was top class.

Nadal had a chance to finish it in the fourth set where Djokovic rallied back to win the set. Djokovic was leading in the fifth set when Nadal proved too strong for him.

Singular points cannot really determine the winner. But in this match, there was one point that seemed to turn it in favour of Nadal. Djokovic was leading 4-3 in the final set and the score was 40-40 when he hit a winner but fell on the net giving Nadal the point - the break point, and Nadal got back into the match by winning this crucial game.

The weird weather conditions, a penalty point, angry outbursts and complaints about the court added to the drama. In the end, Nadal prevailed over Djokovic. From a break down in the last set, Nadal ultimately won the match 6-4, 3-6, 6-1, 6-7(3), 9-7.

Watch some of the great moments here -