German second seed and defending champion Zverev was 3-1 up in the deciding set in Sunday’s final before two rain stoppages halted his momentum at the Foro Italico.

Nadal came back on court re-energised to sweep the final four games and claim victory for his 32nd Masters trophy.

Nadal, who will return to the world number one ranking on Monday, remains the best clay-courter of the Open Era with an astonishing 408-36 record.

He will next seek an 11th French Open crown to match the 11 he already owns from Monte Carlo and Barcelona.

However, the 31-year-old insists that his impeccable clay court credentials will mean little when he heads to Paris for the second major of the season starting next Sunday.

“Conditions in Paris are completely different. I don’t believe that what happened, even if I lost — even with the victory — creates a big impact about what can happen in Paris,” said the Spaniard.

“But, winning always is winning. And, of course, the victories help more than the losses.”

For Zverev, it was a fifth defeat in five meetings with Nadal.

“You are an amazing champion and you proved that today,” said the 21-year-old German who had been on a 13-match winning streak which included back-to-back clay titles in Munich and Madrid.

“You are the greatest clay player of all time, we all saw that. I’m disappointed that my streak is over, but I did lose to Rafa, so maybe it’s OK.”

“There’s nothing I can do about it,” the second seed added. “Next time, I have to find a way to come out better after the rain and play better tennis.

“He came out way faster and played much more aggressive than I did.

“(Because of) the fatigue I had over the last few weeks, it took me a very long time to get activated again and to get going. Obviously, it wasn’t enough time.”

Nadal was 3-1 down at the first rain break in the final set but cut the gap on the resumption.

After a further half an hour off court during the second interruption, he came back out firing, winning four straight games to wrap up the win on his second match point.

“Of course, we can say that the rain helped me,” Nadal said.

“But really what helped me is that I came back with a clear idea in terms of tactical issues and in terms of decisions that I take after that break.

“Of course, a little bit of luck that I had the break back immediately. That was a big help. And I think I played with the right determination and strategy.”

The 36-year-old American, who first played the French Open in 1998, has been the champion in Paris three times.

Should she win a fourth Roland Garros, it will take her level with Margaret Court’s all-time Grand Slam record of 24 majors.

But there are question marks over her fitness and readiness for the 2018 tournament which starts on Sunday.

She has played just four matches on the WTA Tour all year, the last of which was a first round loss in Miami at the end of March.

Her last appearance at a Slam was at the 2017 Australian Open which she won while pregnant.

Having then missed the rest of the season as she gave birth to daughter Alexis Olympia in September, Williams’s world ranking has slumped to 454 from its dizzy heights of undisputed number one.

“I’m not just coming back to come back. I’m coming back to win,” she said defiantly in a HBO documentary ‘Being Serena’ which aired last week.

Her longtime coach Patrick Mouratoglou, who oversaw her first training session on Court Philippe Chatrier at Roland Garros on Sunday, has no doubts that Williams’s competitive streak has not been blunted by the priorities of motherhood.

“Serena will play the French Open to win it,” he told the WTA Tour.

“Can she do it? Serena can achieve anything — after being her coach for six years, I’m even more sure of that statement.”

In her absence — as well as the 15-month doping ban served by longtime rival and five-time major winner Maria Sharapova — there’s been a stampede to get on the Grand Slam honours board before normal service is resumed.

Unheralded Latvian Jelena Ostapenko won last year’s French Open, Sloane Stephens was an equally surprising champion at the US Open before Caroline Wozniacki finally converted potential into Slam success by taking Serena’s Australian Open title in January this year.

– Highs and lows –

Needing to use a protected ranking to get into the main draw in Paris, no-one will want to face a fired-up Serena in the opening rounds in a tournament and city which has given her many highs as well as the occasional low.

It was in 2002 that she won her first Roland Garros — beating sister Venus in the final — and second major after an agonising wait to add to her collection that had stalled at just the one from the 1999 US Open.

She has since added the 2013 and 2015 titles in Paris, more than adequate compensation for the horror shows of 2012 when she was shocked in the first round by French journeywoman Virginie Razzano and a second round exit to Garbine Muguruza two years later.

Paris and its culture — and shopping — have also kept her enthralled.

Serena owns a lavish apartment in the city’s plush 7th arrondissement with a view of the Eiffel Tower.

She has also achieved a smattering of conversational French in which to make winning speeches to an appreciative crowd at Roland Garros.

“I’ve always had a wonderful relationship with Paris,” she admitted. “I feel like I can just live a normal life here.”

Serena’s last appearance at the French Open ended in a final defeat at the hands of Muguruza in 2016.

Mouratoglou believes her rivals will be foolish to think that Serena has little chance of making another championship match in a city she considers to be a second home.

“What I find the most encouraging is her enthusiasm, her motivation, and the quality of her work,” he said.

“She obviously comes back to win and the wait has been long, so she will probably start Roland Garros with a mix of stress, because she will want to do well, and excitement because playing those events is the reason why she made such huge efforts to come back.”

The 22-year-old Thai star rolled in a 20-foot birdie putt on the second playoff hole at the Kingsmill Course in Williamsburg, Virginia, to pip Japanese teen Nasa Hataoka for the title.

“I didn’t feel that much pressure because I did a great job today,” Ariya said. “So whether I’m going to win or lose, I’m very proud of that.”

On the opening sudden death hole, also Kingsmill’s 18th, Ariya had drained a similar-length birdie putt to stay in the hunt, knowing that a mistake would leave Hataoka with a six-foot putt for the title.

South Korea’s Chun In-gee was eliminated in the first hole of the playoff after she could only par.

The tournament had been reduced to 54 holes after severe disruption from weather over the opening three days of the event.

Ariya, who had finished the second round two shots off the lead, produced a blistering final round 66 to earn a spot in the playoff.

The Thai star launched her charge with four birdies over the front nine.

Two more birdies on the 10th and 11th holes put her two clear with seven to play but a bogey on the par-five 15th left her clinging to a one-shot lead at 14 under.

Hataoka, 19, forced her way into the playoff after a bogey-free four-under par 67 in her final round, notching a birdie on the 15th to move to 14 under and into a tie with Ariya.

Chun meanwhile ensured she would have a chance of playing for the title after a birdie on the penultimate hole of her final round for a three-under-68.

All three women headed to the par-four 18th for the opening hole of the playoff, and Hataoka appeared to have seized the initiative with a brilliant second shot to six feet.

But Ariya’s long-range birdie left the Japanese needing to roll in her effort to take it back to the 18th tee, which she duly did. Chun was ousted after missing her birdie putt.

Ariya fired her second shot to almost the same area of the 18th green, while Hataoka was left with an awkward putt from the fringe.

The teenager’s putt rolled past by six feet and Ariya then took full advantage of the opening to stroke home her winning birdie.

The home team, which features all the best Thai players, got off to a great start when world No 4 Ratchanok Intanon used her superior game to beat world No 55 Luise Heim 21-12 21-16 in front of 2,000 fans.

“I was a bit excited as this is my first time playing at home this year,” said the former world No 1, whose last appearance in a home event was when she won the Thailand Open last June.

“I was nervous as we are expected to win at home. The team event is different from [playing as an] individual as no one in the team wants to lose their matches.

“We have to keep going, even if we lose one match, we will try to continue fighting and win the next match,” said the 2013 world champion, who was briefly tested by the German early in the second game before her class prevailed.

“She has a good fighting spirit. She fights for every point,” added Ratchanok who has now set her sights on topping the group. “Sometimes I just tried to play like I normally do during practice to get my momentum on the court.  But I control my mental condition quite well. I kept fighting to win point by point, no matter what.”

Thailand won its second point when Jongkolphan Kittitharakul and Rawinda Prajongjai came back from a second-game lapse to beat Isabel Herttrich and Carla Nelte 21-12 12-21 21-10.

Thai No 2 singles player Nitchaon Jindapol, the world No 11, then clinched overall victory, putting Thailand 3-0 up, by seeing off the 74th-ranked Yvonne Li 21-12 21-18.

Thailand did not relent, even after clinching the tie, however.

Puttita Supajirakul and Sapsiree Taerattanachai won the fourth rubber, beating Johanna Goliszewski and Lara Kaepplein 21-14 21 – 12.

Then world No 22 Busanan Ongbamrungphan completed a whitewash, beating the 86th-ranked Fabienne Deprez 21-13 21-8.

Thailand next plays Hong Kong at 7pm on Monday before its group finale against Taiwan on Wednesday.

In the other Group B round-robin tie, world No 1 Tai Tzu-ying led Taiwan to a 4-1 win over Hong Kong.

In Group A, top seeds Japan led by world No 2 Akane Yamaguchi and reigning world champion Nazomi Okuhara, thrashed Australia 5-0, taking less than 30 minutes to win each rubber.

In Group C, third-seeded South Korea toppled Mauritius 5-0.

In the men’s Thomas Cup competition, 13-time champions Indonesia, spearheaded by world No 13 and 2018 Indonesia Masters champion Anthony Sinisuka Ginting, thrashed Canada 5-0 in Group B without dropping a single game in any of the rubbers.

In Group A, India paid the price for sending second-string players, losing 4-1 to France.

The Thai men’s team lost to South Korea on Sunday and follow up against Indonesia at 7pm on Tuesday.

The Romanian world number one will bid for the title on Sunday against Elina Svitolina in a repeat of last year’s final won by the Ukrainian.

Svitolina booked her spot as she dominated Anett Kontaveit to win 6-4, 6-3 in just 74 minutes.

Halep fought back from a set down to win only her second match against Sharapova, who may have been feeling the effects of a three-hour victory the day before and was broken 10 times.

Halep has now defeated the Russian twice in a row having lost their seven previous meetings.

“She plays tough, it’s difficult to return against her,” Halep said. “I tried to play my game, I didn’t think about our past.

“I did what I had to do, I changed tactics after the first set and it worked very well for me.

“Against Svitolina I must play my best, and we will see what happens.”

Sharapova was burdened by nine double faults over a match lasting almost two and a half hours, taking her cumulative time on court to well over 12 hours this week.

“I think I battled well, it’s always going to be a physical match against Simona,” Sharapova said.

“Despite all things, I was there physically. No problems with that whatsoever.

“There are a lot of good things that I can take away from a week like this. Considering it’s been a third tournament in weeks, that’s a very good thing personally for me.”

Sharapova will still earn a seeding at Roland Garros, starting next Sunday, while Halep will remain number one ahead of Caroline Wozniacki.

Sharapova was playing her second semi-final of the season and should move back into the top 30 as a result.

– Svitolina too strong –

The first meeting between Svitolina and Kontaveit featured four breaks of serve in the first eight games, with the defending champion snatching the early lead after 39 minutes.

Svitolina moved to 3-1 in the second set, reached 5-3 with an ace and served out victory a game later on her second match point.

“I’m very proud of myself already that I reached the final. You know, it was really tough, from the beginning, from the first match,” world number four Svitolina said.

“I work for these kind of matches, I work on it every day. When my opponent tries to hit everything, I have an answer.

“And when my opponent tries to play maybe a little bit more into court I can attack, so that’s an answer.

“Today, I think I was very solid with my performance. And this was really, really good. I’m very proud of this, that I could stay really consistent all match.”

Kontaveit, ranked 26th, had been on a roll against top-10 opponents, upsetting second-ranked Wozniacki and world number nine Venus Williams this week.

“It was definitely a really good week for me. She was really tough today and played really great. I’m only taking the positives from this week,” the Estonian said.

Svitolina will be bidding to win her eighth successive final dating back to last season as she bids for a third title this year after winning in Brisbane and Dubai.

The Spanish top seed will meet second-seeded holder Alexander Zverev, a 7-6 (15/13), 7-5 winner over Australian Open finalist Marin Cilic.

His impressive win over Djokovic will give Nadal added confidence ahead of the French Open, where he has won a record 10 titles.

Nadal, still unbeaten in semi-finals at the Foro Italico, unleashed a trademark clay-court attack after winning a tight first set lasting well over an hour in his 51st meeting with old rival Djokovic.

“I need to be able to play my best tomorrow,” Nadal said of his Sunday final.

“I’m very happy with my game. It all worked for me, the tactics, the shots.”

“To play against Novak you always have to play at the limit of your game with a high intensity and understand well the tactics you want to play.”

The 31-year-old world number two cut the deficit in his head-to-head series with Djokovic to 26-25 since they first faced off in 2006.

But the Serb complained afterwards about poor scheduling which affected his preparation, playing a late-afternoon quarter-final on Friday before returning to court on Saturday mid-afternoon.

“I don’t want to seem like I’m complaining about losing the match because of the schedule. But having to end at night and coming back to play early in the day affects a lot,” he said.

“Nobody has ever, ever reached me in my entire career to ask me about what I think would be the best scheduling. I don’t think that is fair, we will address it in the next players’ council.”

Djokovic has rediscovered his form this week after months of elbow injury problems, including an operation earlier this year.

He can also feel his confidence increasing.

“I don’t think there was that much of a difference, which is great news for me. Winning the tie-break was for him a great wind in his back.

“Rafa was just better in the important moments, played the better shots. He deserved to win

“I haven’t had many breaks in the last period, so I’m pleased by how I’ve played in the last days. I hope Roland Garros can be the continuation”

Alexander Zverev 

Nadal now stands 10-8 over Djokovic in semi-finals, with the pair having played each other at all four Grand Slam tournaments, the ATP Finals, Davis Cup, the Olympic Games along with eight of the nine Masters 1000 events.

Nadal took 73 minutes to win the opening set after leading 5-2.

But to take the early lead, the top seed had to avoid being reeled in by Djokovic.

Djokovic, a four-time Rome winner and former world number one, battled back to 5-5 with a break of the Spaniard before the set went to a tie-break, which

Nadal took on the first of two set points with a backhand winner down the line.

Nadal earned a 2-1 lead in the second set with another break of Djokovic and never lost control.

The top seed kept his nose ahead until the end, winning on his second match point as he fired another untouchable backhand.

Zverev will aim for an upset of Nadal as well as a claycourt Masters double after winning Madrid last weekend.

The 21-year-old German will be playing his fifth final in the last 10 Masters events — he won Rome and Montreal in 2017 and played the Miami final this season.

Saturday’s win over Cilic extended his current win streak to 13 matches while he has 30 match wins in total in 2018.

Eden Hazard’s 22nd minute penalty proved the difference between the teams to ensure Mourinho’s second season at Old Trafford ends without a trophy.

United enjoyed a far better Premier League season than Chelsea as Conte’s men failed to even qualify for the Champions League by finishing fifth just a year after claiming the title.

However, despite finishing second in the league to a record-breaking Manchester City side, Mourinho’s approach has been much-criticised this season for lacking the flair and invention displayed by City and Champions League finalists Liverpool.

“I congratulate them because they won but I don’t think they deserved to win,” said Mourinho.

“I’m curious to read today and tomorrow, to watch, to listen (to) your (the media’s) opinions.”

Mourinho and Conte have consistently clashed since the latter arrived in England just under two years ago.

But tactically they have plenty in common as despite Mourinho’s protestations, Chelsea’s defensive resistence inspired by Conte’s organisation is exactly what Mourinho has made his own trademark in a trophy-laden career.

Mourinho claimed on the eve of the game that he didn’t understand the media’s interpretation of “entertaining”.

In the Portuguese’s estimations, racking up 6-0 victories is not as exciting as “emotion until the end, the game open, everyone on the edge of their seats, both dug-outs nervous and tense with the result in doubt.”

The final did deliver on that promise as Chelsea ‘keeper Thibaut Courtois saved brilliantly from Marcus Rashford and Paul Pogba headed wide as United tried in vein to force the game to extra time.

– Lukaku backlash –

Mourinho hasn’t been afraid to publicly criticise his players this season, most notably lambasting his squad after winning their Cup quarter-final against Brighton in March.

However, one of two exceptions that night along with Nemanja Matic was Romelu Lukaku.

The Belgian striker has scored 27 goals in all competitions in his debut season at Old Trafford.

But even he bore the brunt of Mourinho’s frustration for only declaring himself fit enough for a late cameo appearance from the bench due to an ankle injury.

“When a player tells you he is not ready to play, not ready to start, then the question is how many minutes you think you can? How can you convince a player?,” he added.

“Chelsea are not stupid. They know our team without Lukaku does not have a presence, so putting eight or nine players in front of the box they knew they would be dominant in that direct football.

“We tried everything by other ways but they had a huge block of compacted players.”

The damage at the other end was done early on when Chelsea capitalised on a fast start, and a fine individual display by Hazard.

The diminutive Belgian excelled in the space between United’s defence and midfield despite Mourinho’s best efforts to man mark him with Ander Herrera.

Hazard pounced on indecision by Phil Jones to burst clear on goal and was then brought down by the England international as he prepared to shoot before converting the spot-kick himself.

“They only play long ball,” insisted Mourinho. “When you play against a team so predictable, it is quite easy to adapt to it. But of course Hazard is a very good player and of course he created a penalty.”

Conte ended a troubled season on a high note thanks to Chelsea’s 1-0 victory over Manchester United in Saturday’s final at Wembley.

Eden Hazard’s first half penalty was followed by a backs to the wall display as Conte won the second trophy of his two-year reign in what may prove his final game in charge.

Whether FA Cup glory will be enough to convince Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich not to sack Conte remains in doubt after the Blues finished fifth in the Premier League and missed out on Champions League qualification.

The Italian has been embroiled in a turbulent campaign marred by his feud with the club’s hierarchy over their failure to back his transfer plans following last season’s Premier League title triumph.

Conte is also said to have infuriated several Chelsea stars with his intense personality and regimented training sessions.

But the former Juventus and Italy coach is adamant his managerial style has made him a “serial winner” who should be respected.

In a clear warning that he will never stop pushing his players or demanding boardroom backing, Conte emerged from the jubilant Chelsea dressing room to send a defiant message to his club.

Still soaked in champagne from the post-match celebrations, Conte said: “After two years the club knows me very well. If they want to continue to work with me, they know me.

“I can’t change. My way is always the same; hard work and to build a strong mentality with my players.

“I can’t change. I’m this and I think my past speaks very clear as a player and as a manager.

“You can say what you want, but I’m a serial winner.

“I showed this in England in a difficult moment for the club. I’ve showed this today, because we found the right way to win this trophy.

“There are moments that you have a lot of questions for yourself. To win in this way this season gives me more satisfaction than my wins in the past.”

– ‘We must be honest’ –

Conte, who won three Serie A titles with Juventus, has one year left on his contract after signing an improved deal without an extension at the end of last season.

But the 48-year-old has given the impression for much of the season that he would have no problem leaving Stamford Bridge because he knows he would still be in demand from top clubs.

Asked if he expects to be in charge next season, Conte said he would respect whatever decision was taken.

“I always say I’m committed to this club, to respect my contract,” he said.

“As you know very well our job is not simple. I understand that the club can make a decision, a positive decision, a negative decision. I’m the first to understand.

“I’m the coach of a great, important club. It’s right that the club demands of me a lot. For sure we’ll make the best decision.”

In truth, Conte may have burned too many bridges to stay with Chelsea amid speculation that former Barcelona boss Luis Enrique and Napoli manager Maurizio Sarri are Abramovich’s top targets to succeed him.

In another swipe at Chelsea’s refusal to sign his top targets last year, he added: “As you know very well I predicted the difficulty at the start of the season.

“To miss a place in the Champions League is not good for a club like Chelsea.

“We must be honest to tell this. But at the same time you have to know the real situation.

“There is the possibility with this group of players we did the maximum.”

If Conte does leave, it will be despite the support of Chelsea’s fans, who serenaded him as he joined in the celebrations on the Wembley turf.

“After these two seasons I will always love this colour, these fans, this club. Even if my future must be in a different way,” he said.

Thailand badminton coach Rexy Mainaky is more confident of his women’s team progressing further than the men as the prestigious Thomas and Uber Cups, which start on Sunday at the Impact Arena Muang Thong Thani.

The home women’s team looks strong, led by world No 4 Ratchanok Intanon and No 11 Nitchaon Jindapol, and backede up by the doubles world No 8 pairing of Jongkolphan Kittitharakul and Rawinda Prajongjai.

Mainaky, the Atlanta Olympic men’s doubles gold medallist from Indonesia, is highly confident his girls will dominate the Uber Cup’s Group B, which also comprises Taiwan, Germany and Hong Kong.

“We have the chance to reach the quarter-finals or go even further depending on the draw [the draw will be made after the group stage],” said the 50-year-old, whose women launch their campaign against Germany at 2pm today. The matches are being broadcast live on True Sport HD 667 and 668.

While Mainaky remains highly positive about his Uber Cup team, he is more realistic about the men’s hopes in the Thomas Cup.

They have been drawn in a tough group with 13-time champions Indonesia, two-time runners-up South Korea and Canada.

“Our Thomas team comprises young players and we have to play tough teams like 13-time champions Indonesia and South Korea. If we can pull out a win over South Korea [today], then we stand a chance to reach the next round,” added Mainaky.

Both events consist of 16 teams divided into four group of four, with the top two in each group qualifying for the knock-out stage.

World No 25 Khosit Phetpradab, Thailand’s No 1 Thomas Cup player, admitted to feeling the pressure from the expectations of the home fans.

“We want to live up to the expectations, which brings pressure. We will try to turn it into an extra boost and fight as hard as we can out there,” said the 23-year-old from Chiang Mai.

Due to her calibre as the former world no 1 and former world champion, Thai women’s No 1 Ratchanok will also carry a big burden on her shoulders in her first home event since winning the Thailand Open last June.

“Everybody in the team is working hard and is inspired to produce great results in front of the home fans,” said Ratchanok, who has one title under her belt from the Malaysian Masters this year.

Viktor Axelsen of Denmark

Men’s world No 1 Viktor Axelsen is determined to lead Denmark to a successful title defence campaign after a surprise 3-2 win over Indonesia in the 2016 final, which made his side the first from Europe to win the Thomas Cup.

The 23-year-old world champion in 2017 will be making his second appearance since returning from an ankle injury which kept him on the sidelines since January.

He made his comeback in the European Championships just last month … and duly took the gold medal.

“Winning the European Championships title gives me confidence coming into this tournament,” said Axelsen.

“It will be tough to win again as there are many strong teams but if we keep doing the same things we did last time, we can defend our title.”

Denmark, in Group D, will start their campaign tomorrow against Algeria.

Olympic singles gold medalist Chen long of China

The Danes will also face a real test on Wednesday against five-time champions Malaysia, who feature former world No 1 Lee Chong Wei and rising star Leong Jun Hao, the 2017 Asian Junior Championships gold medallist and 2017 World Junior Championships runner-up.

Nine-time champions China are the heavy favourites to win and have two Olympic gold medallists – Lin Dan and Chen Long – in their line-up.

They are in Group A along with Australia, France and India.

Since 2004, China have dominated, winning the biennial tournament five times.

South Korea’s Chun finished with a 11-under par total of 131 for a one-shot lead over Japan’s Nasa Hataoka and Austin Ernst of the US who shot 66 and 65 respectively on the River Course in Williamsburg, Virginia.

Players had to endure two rain delays before play was suspended in the evening with about 60 golfers still on the course trying to finish their rounds.

The second round will resume early Saturday morning with the third round beginning a couple of hours later.

Chun, who is ranked 15th in the world, took advantage of the soft playing conditions to shoot a half dozen birdies. Her first bogey of the tournament came on the par-four fourth hole.

“I felt good. I could see the putting lines very well today, so I made a good score,” Chun said.

Chun said she spent the morning rain delay working on her health and fitness.

“When I came here the weather was not good so we got a one hour delay. So I did treatment this morning before the start,” she said.

Ernst shot one of the best rounds of the day and her lowest round of the season.

“It was a lot of fun. I should do this more often,” said Ernst. “My game has felt really good all year, it’s really just been a matter of cleaning a few things up.”

She said you can’t afford to make mistakes with your irons on this course.

“You need to be a good ball-striker, you need to drive the ball well (and) good iron shots are a premium out here,” she said. “Whatever it is about the place, I really like it.”

Thailand’s Ariya Jutanugarn shot a four-under 67 and was tied for fourth with Angel Yin (66) at nine-under, two shots adrift of Chun.