"He steps it up one more level," Dominic Thiem on Rafael Nadal's dominance at the French Open

Rafael Nadal is arguably the best clay court player across all eras. The Spaniard has won 14 French Open titles, and is almost undefeatable in Paris. Recently, Austrian tennis star Dominic Thiem commented on Rafael Nadal's dominance at the French Open, stating that he steps it up a couple of steps higher in Paris.

Dominic Thiem has lost to Rafael Nadal four times at the French Open, twice in the finals in 2018 and 2019. In 2019, he could at least manage to win a set, whereas, in 2018, he was ousted in straight sets.

Dominic Thiem has achieved some success against the Spaniard on clay courts, having beaten him four times on this surface.

"Don't even start... Domi [Dominic Thiem] did much better than me so you should ask him for advice, but he can start. You [Thiem] played him several times… you beat him on clay but not in Roland Garros," Ruud said.

"I think five times in Roland Garros… 14, 17, 18, 19 four times. Roland Garros is one, he steps it up one more level. It can be ugly on one point, you don't know how to win a point anymore."