Rafael Nadal has won the hearts of people around the world through his sheer will to succeed. Despite being injured and exhausted, the Spaniard won his 22nd grand slam title on Sunday. The Spaniard has been receiving wishes from all over the world for his monumental effort.

Former world no. 1 Andy Roddick too defended and praised the ‘King of Clay’ for his arduous yet glorifying victory to clinch the French Open title.

Andy Roddick defends and praises Rafael Nadal

Andy Roddick took to Twitter in support of the tennis commentator, Brett Haber’s pick for the tournament. He had tweeted, “Foot and rib cage and Djokovic and Alcaraz notwithstanding, I cannot bring myself to pick anyone other than @RafaelNadal as the @rolandgarros favorite. One day he’ll retire, and at minimum 3 years after that, I might pick someone else.”

To which Andy Roddick tweeted, “Weird saying it, but this was actually a risky pick based on form and foot questions going on. Weirder saying that someone has won a single grand slam event 14 times. Grande @RafaelNadal!! Legend.” 

Rafael Nadal, by winning the French Open 2022 for the 14th time in his career, has certainly cemented himself as one of the all-time greats, if not the greatest.

Resilience of Rafa- An inspirational figure

Rafa defeated Norwegian Casper Ruud to clinch the title at the French Open 2022. He had previously broken the tie between him, Novak Djokovic and Roger Federer by winning the Australian Open, his 21st grand slam title.

DIVE DEEPER: Rafael Nadal Compared to F1 GOATs Lewis Hamilton & Michael Schumacher Following Unimaginable Roland Garros Feat

The Spaniard had to suffer a lot because of his persistent foot injury before the clay court major. So, he had taken a halt as well.

However, according to Nadal himself, the pain did not completely subside. Despite all that, the player stayed resilient and defeated Novak Djokovic in the quarter-finals, followed by Alexander Zverev in the semis.

WATCH THIS STORY: Top Five Moments of Rafael Nadal at Monte Carlo Masters

He went on to win the clay court major to become the first man to achieve the feat of winning 22 grand slam titles.

Can Rafa beat his injury struggles and vie for the trophy at the upcoming Wimbledon Championships? Give us your views in the comments.