Rafael Nadal is the second-youngest player to win nine Grand Slam titles

He won NFL jersey on the grass at Wimbledon in 2007, edging Federer 9-7 in the fifth set as darkness descended, then again this year. He won on the hard courts at the Australian Open in 2009, again besting Federer in five sets.

All that was left was the U.S. Open. After complaining of fatigue in 2008, coming off his gold medal from the Beijing Olympics, then dealing with bad knees and a torn abdominal muscle in 2009, he set out to make this trip to Flushing Meadows different.

He curtailed his schedule a bit in the spring, to save some wear and tear. He took extra time off after Wimbledon, getting treatment on his knees and skipping the Davis Cup quarterfinals.

It all worked. Nadal only had one blip all tournament: The second set Monday evening. Perhaps bothered by some pro-Djokovic supporters yelling between serves — earning an admonishment from the chair umpire — Nadal fell behind 3-1 by making four mistakes, including a double-fault, to get broken at love.

When Nadal pushed a backhand long to close a 19-shot point, 2008 Australian Open champion Djokovic screamed, “Come on!” It was part of a run of 11 consecutive points for Djokovic, who went ahead 4-1.

As quickly as Nadal lost his way, however, he gathered mlb jerseys himself, his strokes gaining steam, his footwork as good as ever. A violent backhand on a 23-stroke exchange allowed Nadal to break back, and he held to 4-all, which is when there was a two-hour rain delay.

Djokovic took that set — the only one of 22 played by Nadal in New York this year that he lost. He came oh-so-close to being the first man in a half-century to win this tournament without dropping a set.

“Nadal … is just proving each day, each year, that he’s getting better. That’s what’s so frustrating, a little bit. He’s getting better each time you play him,” Djokovic said. “He’s so mentally strong and dedicated to this sport. He has all the capabilities, everything he needs, in order to be the biggest ever.”

Nadal stretched his Grand Slam winning streak to 21 matches by adding the U.S. Open to his titles at the French Open in June, then Wimbledon in July. No man had won those three tournaments in the same year since Rod Laver won a true Grand Slam in 1969. Now Nadal heads to the Australian Open in January with a chance to claim a Rafa Slam of four consecutive major championships — something that also hasn’t been done since Laver.

Djokovic, who overtakes Federer at No. 2 in the rankings this week, made Nadal earn it. The Serb played superbly for long stretches, showing off terrific returning, retrieving and a big forehand.

Coming out of the rain delay with Djokovic serving at 4-all, 30-all in the second set, both players clearly benefited from a bit of rest. Fresh of body and clear of mind, and with conditions perfect for tennis — calm and cool, the temperature in the 70s — they were superb, engaging in 10-, 15-, 20-stroke points that drew standing ovations and camera flashes from the stands, no matter who hit the winner.

And there were winners aplenty at both ends — 49 by Nadal, 45 by Djokovic — as well as point-extending defense, sneakers squeaking as they scurried around the court. The key, perhaps, was this: Nadal made only two unforced errors in the fourth set. It’s not as though he was playing safe, either, cranking up his groundstrokes and aiming for the lines.

Nadal was back to his relentless best in the third and fourth, hitting shots so well that Djokovic was moved to applaud on occasion. A drop volley here; a running backhand passing winner there; most delivered with a sneer.

Nadal broke for 2-1 leads in each of those last two sets. As the finish line approached, Toni Nadal kept putting his palms down and motioning to his nephew to keep calm. That he did, arriving at match point by sprinting to reach a drop shot and whipping a forehand that landed right on the baseline.

When Djokovic hit a forehand wide to end it second later, Nadal fell backward onto the court with a shout. He rolled onto his stomach, and placed his forehand on his arms, savoring the moment.

About a half-hour later, the 2010 U.S. Open champion carried his shiny new trophy into the player garden outside Arthur Ashe Stadium. His uncle followed, toting a bottle of champagne in each hand. A couple of dozen relatives and friends gathered around, sipping the bubbly and taking photos.

Like a family picnic, only not at a neighborhood park, but at the biggest Grand Slam tennis arena there is.

Amid the celebration, Toni Nadal was asked where his nephew stands in the tennis pantheon.

“The best of all time Federer, Borg, Laver. They’re the best. Rafael is very far away from those guys. Rafael is a good player. I think he’s a Very Good NFL jersey  player,” Uncle Toni said. “But I don’t know if he’s part of that group.”

Could he be, one day?

“I don’t know,” came the reply. “Ask me in five or six years, and maybe I can say.”

By then — if not sooner — maybe the rest of the world can, too.

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