The heavy top spin. That lefty spin. And the loopy trajectory.

Rafael Nadal's forehand gave Novak Djokovic fits in the latest installment of the most-played rivalry in modern men's tennis.

A whopping 26 forehand winners－15 in the first set alone－helped Nadal to a 7-5, 1-6, 6-3 victory and a record-extending 10th Italian Open title on Sunday.

Whipping forehands that produced an average of 54 revolutions per second－to Djokovic's 45 revolutions－Nadal's biggest weapon was in top form.

"I have been playing better and better with my forehand the last couple of weeks, getting to the confidence point," Nadal said. "That's a huge improvement for me, very important shot. Especially on clay it gives me confidence."

The title also reestablished Nadal as the overwhelming favorite for the French Open, where the Spaniard will be aiming for an even harder-to-believe 14th title starting in two weeks.

But Nadal preferred to focus on his achievement in Rome－at least for the moment.

"To have this trophy in my hands for the 10th time is something hard to believe," Nadal said, recalling how he won his first title at the Foro Italico in 2005 as an 18-year-old, when he beat Guillermo Coria in a match lasting more than five hours.

"Now, 16 years later, to play in the final again is incredible," Nadal said in Italian during the trophy presentation. "It's difficult to describe. Without a doubt this is one of the most important places in my career."

Three forehand winners helped Nadal produce the decisive break in the third set, when Djokovic's energy level appeared to dip.

The top-ranked Djokovic spent nearly five hours on court Saturday, when he had to rally for a rain-delayed quarterfinal victory over Stefanos Tsitsipas before winning another three-setter over local favorite Lorenzo Sonego in the semifinals. Nadal played only once on Saturday, beating Reilly Opelka in 1½ hours.

"He managed to break my serve and played better. That's it," Djokovic said. "I had my shot to win it but wasn't meant to be. I didn't feel fatigue. Actually, I was very happy with the way I felt on the court. I could have gone for another few hours."

In the women's final, reigning French Open champion Iga Swiatek routed Karolina Pliskova with a "double bagel" 6-0, 6-0.

"I did that so well that I didn't even know that it was 6-0 in the first set," Swiatek said. "So that was kind of funny, because I asked my coach what was the score after the match. Mentally I was really in good shape today."

It was the first double bagel in a WTA final in five years, since Simona Halep overwhelmed Anastasija Sevastova in Bucharest.

It was the 57th meeting between Nadal and Djokovic, which is the most matches between two men in the Open era. It was also their ninth meeting in Rome, where they have played more than anywhere else.

Djokovic now holds the slimmest of edges in the all-time series, 29-28, while Nadal holds a 6-3 advantage in Rome overall and 4-2 in Rome finals.

'Long shot'

Djokovic admitted that he's "a long shot" to win Roland Garros where he would likely have to dethrone Nadal.

Djokovic may be world No 1, but it's Nadal who is the undisputed king of clay in the French capital where he has lost just twice in 102 matches since 2005.

"Going into Paris brings me a good sensation," insisted Djokovic despite a roller-coaster clay-court swing which yielded a last-16 exit in Monte Carlo and a semifinal loss on home ground in Belgrade.

Nadal, by comparison, has two titles in Rome and Barcelona but sobering quarterfinal losses in Monte Carlo and Madrid.

"I actually now started to feel like I actually want to feel on clay," added Djokovic. "So I think if I manage to play the way I played last night (against Sonego in a three-set semifinal) and today, I think I have a good chance to go all the way in Paris. Of course it's a long shot."

Djokovic has 18 Grand Slam titles to his name－two behind the record of 20 shared by Nadal and Roger Federer.

However, only one of those has come in Paris, in 2016 when Nadal withdrew injured after the second round. Djokovic was swept aside by Nadal in the 2020 final.

Before that, he had lost three other finals in Paris, two also to Nadal and one against Stan Wawrinka.

However, Djokovic still has a place in the record books to target as he hopes to become the first man in over half a century, and just the third in history, to win all four majors more than once.

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