Rafael Nadal of Spain, winner of the 2010 U.S. Open tennis tournament, poses with the trophy at Times Square in New York

Rafael Nadal defeated Novak Djokovic to claim the title of men’s singles champion at the 2010 U.S. Open Monday, completing a career Grand Slam in the process.

The 24-year-old entered the Open ranked No. 1 in the world, with an Olympic gold medal and trophies from eight previous Slam wins on the shelf at home. This win makes him just the seventh man in history to achieve a career Slam, the third youngest to do it, and puts him at No. 4 on the all-time list of most Slam wins.

The victory has been a long time in coming for Nadal. Despite winning five French Open titles, a pair of championships at Wimbledon and the Australian Open, the U.S. Open trophy has perennially eluded him. The preternaturally skilled Spaniard was knocked out before the finals in each of his previous contests in Queens.  His 2010 showing, however, was close to perfect — Nadal dropped only one set to Djokovic (the second set) in the entire series. 

It’s a fantastic reward for a young man who encountered some difficulties in 2009. Though he began the year by winning the Australian Open, Nadal was forced to withdraw from several tournaments as a result of knee injuries. Later, the divorce of his parents caused him admitted emotional distress.

Nadal and Djokovic endured erratic weather, including two lengthy rain delays, in their hard fought battle for the 2010 U.S. title.  Djokovic, a Serbian who won the Australian Open in 2008, returned to the U.S. finals after falling to Federer in straight sets in 2007.

Belgium’s Kim Clijsters repeated as women’s singles champ, handily besting Vera Zvonareva of Russia on Saturday.  American brothers Bob and Mike Bryan took home their third U.S. Open trophy in the men’s doubles category.

To reach writer Kate Rooney, click here.

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