French Open 2017: Was Rafael Nadal's 'La Decima' the greatest Grand Slam performance of all time?

The Mallorcan swept to the title with a 6-2 6-3 6-1 win over Stanislas Wawrinka at Roland Garros 12 years after he first claimed the Grand Slam on clay at the age of 19 in 2005.

Remarkably, like a fine Spanish wine, Nadal at the age of 31 is getting better with age to such a point that many commentators believe his 10th success as the undisputed 'King of Clay' was his greatest performance on the surface that illuminates his career.

The raw statistics would seem to suggest so.

In terms of individual dominance, without a doubt. But it depends on how you see it.

Federer's five-set win over Nadal at the Australian Open in January remains the greatest of all time simply because of what he achieved in claiming an 18th at the age of 35. It was won five years after his last major set against the adversity of having to return from six months out with a knee injury.

But it obviously did not come as easy as Rafa at Roland Garros.

Borg lost two fewer games in 1978 playing with a wooden racket, but one has to remember that the athleticism was less ferocious in those days. There is also the fact that the Swedish player retired when he was 26, having won the last of his six French Opens aged 25.

Nadal is six years older than Borg in winning his latest French Open yet remarkably shows little sign of decay. Borg is also third on the list of the fewest games lost, having won in 1980 hemorrhaging 38 games with Nadal next on the list losing only 41 in 2008.

Many will suggest Nadal's 34 this year was boosted by the retirement of an injured player Pablo Carreno Busta leading 6-2 2-0 in the quarter-final, but there is every chance he would have beaten his 2008 mark for games conceded.

Nadal's backhand has remarkably grown as strong as his forehand lending wisdom to Federer's decision to skip the clay season when it turns out the field was playing for second place in Paris.

There remains an outside chance Nadal could draw level with Federer's 18 Grand Slams by winning another three on his favourite surface. That wouldn't make him the greatest, but it would merely supplement the fact that nobody has or will be as supreme on a single surface as Nadal on clay.

And whatever happens, 'La Decima' will be remembered as a bit special because it was his most dominant performance in a career of dominance.

It could be argued that we have witnessed the two most spectacular Grand Slam wins in the first two majors of the season. In that order.