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Reuters 18y

Tennis-Nadal eyes place among claycourt greats

By James Eve

ROME, May 14 - Though he is the world's number two
tennis player, Rafael Nadal is the undisputed champion on clay
after beating Roger Federer 6-7 7-6 6-4 2-6 7-6 in the final of
the Rome Masters on Sunday.

With his defeat of the world number one, Nadal equalled
Guillermo Vilas's record of 53 consecutive wins on the surface,
which was set in 1977.

It was his fourth win in a row over Federer and his second
on clay this year, after victory in the final of the Monte Carlo
Masters in April.

Argentine Vilas's record is almost certain to fall when
Nadal plays Tommy Haas in the first round of the Hamburg Masters
claycourt tournament which starts on Monday.

The 19-year-old Nadal will also be a good bet to defend his
title at the French Open, which begins on May 29.

Drawing level with Vilas was one more milestone in the
meteoric rise of Nadal, who was virtually unknown outside the
tennis world at the start of last year.

Until then, his most noteworthy achievements were winning
the 2003 ATP Newcomer of the Year award and a solitary ATP
title, picked up in Sopot in mid-2004.

In February of 2005, he started to win. Back-to-back titles
in Costa do Sauipe and Acapulco were followed in April by a
five-set battle against Federer in the final of the Miami
Masters event that propelled him into the general consciousness.

The Spaniard won 11 titles in 2005, including the French
Open and four Masters tournaments in Monte Carlo, Rome, Montreal
and Madrid, establishing himself as the only serious challenger
to Federer's vice-like grip on the world game.

On clay at least, Nadal is clearly one step ahead of his
contemporaries. After Rome it is also justifiable to ask if he
is the best claycourt player of all time.

His win over Federer allowed him to equal Vilas's winning
streak, match Bjorn Borg's record of 16 tournament wins as a
teenager and became the first player since Thomas Muster of
Austria to successfully defend the Rome title.

Whether he becomes a greater player than those three depends
on the future.

What is beyond question is that none of that illustrious
trio achieved so much so young as Nadal.

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