Good afternoon and welcome to Sports Mole's live coverage of the 2012 men's French Open final between Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal.
Play at Roland Garros was suspended on Sunday due to bad weather, with Nadal two-sets-to-one ahead of his Serbian opponent.
Djokovic had secured an early break in the fourth, however, and we are therefore delicately poised ahead of the conclusion.
Nadal will secure a record seventh French Open title should he record the win. Meanwhile, victory for Djokovic would make him just the third man in history to hold all four majors at the same time.
13.20Right, there we go then. Rafael Nadal wins the 2012 French Open. It has been a wonderful 16 days. Thanks for joining Sports Mole for the coverage!
13.17Nadal: "For me it is an honour. This tournament is the most special in the world. Having this trophy with me is unforgettable." Nadal also thanked the public and his team for their support. He leaves with the passing message: "See you next year".
13.15A word from Djokovic: "Congratualtions Rafa and his team. A great player and a great team and thanks to the public too for their support. I am really privileged to be in this position at the final of Roland Garros. I hope to come back next year and play even better."
13.12And here comes Nadal. The roof is raised. You could never imagine that Bjorn Borg's six titles could ever be beaten. It has.
13.10Here comes Djokovic. Fantastic response from the crowd. He deserves it.
13.08The tears flow for Nadal. What a player this man is. He stands alone with seven French Open titles. At the age of 26.
13.06The Serbian's time will come again. That is for certain. We have the presentation ceremony to follow.
13.05Djokovic sits slumped in his chair. What an effort from the big man. Extroadinary end.
13.04Nadal wins his seventh French Open title.
13.04Result: Nadal 6-4 6-3 2-6 7-5 Djokovic
13.02Double fault! Wow! Nadal wins the French Open!
13.00Djokovic fires long! Championship point!
13.00Nadal just cannot get any distance on his backhand lob and Djokovic gobbles it up to lead 30-15.
12.58Wow. Djokovic fires long! 15-15. Nadal is just three points away.
12.58Poor from Nadal as he strikes the net. 15-0.
12.55Nadal holds! The Spaniard leads 6-5 in the fourth. Djokovic must hold serve to stay in the match.
12.53Djokovic fires long! 40-30 Nadal.
12.53Nadal is rattled here. 30-0 to 30-30.
12.53Wow! Nadal calls the ball long but the umpire refuses to check as the Spaniard had already taken part in the next phase of play. Wow.
12.52Wow. Nadal's fourth ace moves him 30-0 ahead. Uncle Toni enjoyed that one.
12.52The sun has joined us in Paris! It's about time! 15-0 Nadal.
12.50Djokovic levels it at 5-5.
12.48Brilliant from Djokovic as he takes a 40-15 lead. You just know that this one is heading for a tie-break.
12.48Long from Djokovic! 15-15.
12.46Brilliant from Djokovic as he releases a forehand to move 15-0 ahead on serve.
12.46We are back out to continue! Let's play.
12.44Any sign of that roof at Roland Garros?!
12.43Both players are waiting on court under the umbrellas.
12.42It's all happening here. The rain is pouring down.
12.42Fantastic love game from Nadal. He leads 5-4 in the fourth.
12.40Wow. Just brilliant from Nadal as he opens up a 40-0 lead on serve.
12.38A word from The Times tennis correspondent Neil Harman: "To my mind we are in the same conditions that we had when we left the court last night. There is steady drizzle, it is pretty gloomy and still they go on."
12.38Ace from Djokovic as he holds. This one is level at 4-4 in the fourth.
12.36It's long from Djokovic! 30-30. Can Nadal break?
12.36It's long from Nadal as this one is tied at 15-15.
12.34The umbrellas are going up. It is beginning to rain harder. Brilliant! Nadal leads 0-15.
12.32Weather update: It does not look good! Grey clouds.
12.32However, it's poor from Djokovic as he strikes the net. Nadal wins it with a running forehand. The Spaniard leads 4-3.
12.30Nadal hits his 16th forehand error to allow Djokovic back into this game at 30-15.
12.28The Serbian does indeed hold to tie it at 3-3 in the fourth.
12.26But there's Djokovic with a timely reminder of why he is the world's best player. He leads 40-15 on serve.
12.24Stunning hitting from Nadal as he ties it at 15-15 on the Djokovic serve.
12.24What a huge service game this is for Djokovic.
12.22And there's the hold to love - "Vamos!" Rafa cries.
12.22Huge serving from Nadal as he moves 40-0 ahead. The Spaniard is back in control of this one.
12.20Just brilliant from Nadal as he releases a forehand with all sorts of spin. Just fantastic.
12.18... Nadal breaks! Huge slice of luck as the ball hits the net and Djokovic simply cannot return the Nadal backhand. 2-2 on serve in the fourth.
12.17Break point Nadal as Djokovic smashes the net from close range...
12.15Djokovic fires long to hand Nadal a 15-30 lead. Can the Spaniard break back?
12.15Another fantastic piece of sportsmanship in this final as Nadal calls a Djokovic serve in. There is such respect between these two. 15-15.
12.13Here we go then. Djokovic to serve at 2-1 in the fourth.
12.11Quick fact for you: Court Philippe Chatrier was built in 1929. It really is a wonderful arena.
12.08This one is going to be fun. Nadal needs to win just one set to win the tournament. Easy ay!
12.05The court is nicely filling up - that's good news.
12.03Here we go then. Both players are on court.
12.01It is also not yet clear how many people are expected at Roland Garros for the conclusion. It could be half-empty.
11.58I wonder who would have slept better last night? Meanwhile, the weather in Paris does not look fantastic for this afternoon!
11.55My argument yesterday was for the introduction of a roof at the French Open. And I'm sure those who cannot return today due to work commitments will agree!
11.52We hope that the weather stays with us today. However, if conditions do become damp once more, you would have to favour Djokovic.
11.50Drizzle began to appear within 20 minutes of the match. However, no break was apparent until a later 35-minute interval. Fransson told reporters: "Both players didn't have any comments about bringing them back on the court, even if it was spitting a little bit."
11.48Nadal continued to rant at each changeover and he had an angry exchange with tournament referee Stefan Fransson. The Spaniard raged: "So you think conditions are right? It's always the same with you."
11.47Djokovic secured a stunning six games in a row to take the third set 6-2. Meanwhile, the Serbian also moved a break ahead in the fourth.
11.45On paper, you would have thought that the rain would favour Nadal. However, his topspin forehand proved less effective once the court became wetter.
11.45Nadal was certainly the dominant player in the early stages of the match as he raced into a two-set lead. He was relentless with his ground-strokes, and but for the first rain break, he might have tied this one up in three sets.
Written by
Matt Law
Matt Law
