RAFAEL Nadal retained his French Open title and ended Roger Federer's hopes of holding all four Grand Slam titles at once with a four-set win. A day earlier, Justine Henin-Hardenne successfully defended her French Open title with victory over Svetlana Kuznetsova at Roland Garros. The 20-year-old Spaniard, Rafael Nadal, became the first man to beat Federer in a Grand Slam final, winning 1-6 6-1 6-4 7-6 (7-4) in three hours two minutes. Federer suffered an alarming slump in form after an impressive first set. And Nadal took full advantage, dominating for three sets and sealing victory on his first match point. "This is a fantastic victory and an incredible moment in my career as a tennis player," said Nadal. "Federer is the best player in history. No other player has ever had such quality." Nadal has now won 60 consecutive matches on clay and is unbeaten at Roland Garros with a 14-0 record after winning on his debut last year. It was a huge anti-climax for Federer, who failed to maintain anything like his best form as he tried to join Don Budge and Rod Laver as the only men to hold all four Grand Slam titles at the same time. The Swiss star went into the match with a poor 1-5 record against Nadal but insisted he was confident of turning things around. He made a nervous start, slipping 15-40 down in his opening service game, but coming through to hold Nadal which seemed to instill belief in the Swiss star. Federer broke Nadal immediately and then repeated the effort to go 5-0 up on his way to taking the first set. It was at that point that the enormity of what could happen appeared to hit Federer, and his game unravelled. Nadal had missed five break points in the first set but finally converted his seventh to go 2-0 up in the second set and he raced through it to level. A total of 16 unforced errors from Federer told the story of the second set and it was a similar story in the third. Federer's big chance came with three break points in game four but Nadal held from 0-40 and then broke in the following game. The Spaniard served out the set and when he broke early in the fourth the title appeared to be his. There was one last effort from a low-key Federer, with Nadal feeling the pressure when serving for the title at 5-4. But it was only a momentary blip from the 20-year-old, who took control of the tie-break with four straight points and clinched the match with a winning forehand. "I really want to congratulate Rafael," said Federer afterwards. "He is so strong on clay and played a really good match. He is so hard to beat on this surface. He's performed a great season on clay and during the fortnight. He truly deserves to win." In the women's singles, Justine Henin-Hardenne successfully defended her French Open title with victory over Svetlana Kuznetsova at Roland Garros. The Belgian won 6-4, 6-4 to take her third French title in four years, and her fifth Grand Slam crown in total. Henin-Hardenne broke Kuznetsova in the opening game on her way to taking the first set, and came back from a break down in the second. She converted her second match point to win in one hour and 36 minutes. The 24-year-old becomes the eighth woman to win the Roland Garros title at least three times and first to win back-to-back titles since Steffi Graf in 1996. "I'm delighted to get my third win here, it has been a fantastic tournament and it is a fantastic feeling to win again," said fifth seed Henin-Hardenne. In searing heat on the Phillipe Chatrier Court, Henin-Hardenne broke Kuznetsova in the first game and was soon 4-1 ahead. Eighth seed Kuznetsova got one of the breaks back and, despite seeing the first set slip away, improved enough to go 2-0 ahead in the second set. But Henin-Hardenne quickly levelled and when she saved a break point on her serve in the sixth game, it proved the last moment of doubt for the Belgian. "I suffered physically today," said Henin-Hardenne. "I was very tired and didn't sleep well. I played better on the big points. "When I made the break at 3-3 in the second set that was the turning point." Kuznetsova admitted: "It's disappointing for sure, but it's still a final at Roland Garros. "I'm disappointed I didn't take my chances, but Justine played a great match." Top seeds Lisa Raymond of the United States and Samantha Stosur of Australia won the French Open women's doubles title in straight sets. They beat fifth-seeded pair Daniela Hantuchova of Slovakia and Ai Sugiyama of Japan 6-3 6-2. It is the second Grand Slam title for the pairing after victory in last year's US Open. Raymond becomes the 13th woman in the professional era to win all four Grand Slam titles. She won the Australian Open in 2000 and Wimbledon and the US Open the following year. Second seeds Jonas Bjorkman and Max Mirnyi beat top seeds Bob and Mike Bryan to retain their men's doubles title at the French Open. Sweden's Bjorkman served out for a 6-7 6-4 7-5 victory after he and Mirnyi, of Belarus, had recovered from a break down in the deciding set. The Bryan brothers, of the US, had been going for their third straight Grand Slam title.
