They love inscribing tokens of affection on to the clay of Roland Garros. Gustavo Kuerten, who won the French Open three times and was brought over from Brazil to present the Coupe des Mousquetaires yesterday, once drew a heart on the surface. They might as well brush the words “Abandon all hope ye who enter here” on the surface in front of anyone who wishes to take on the matchless Rafael Nadal.

The 21-year-old from Manacor, the most famous corner of Majorca, that most celebrated of the Balearic Islands, became the champion here for the third time in succession on a day of sweat-house heat that, in company with Nadal’s relentless play, drained all the spirit and life from Roger Federer. Will this forever be one championship too far for the world No 1?

He knows what it is like to be a flat-track bully on grass, so he can empathise with the way that Nadal lauds it over terre battue. But Federer had his chances, so many of them that it was difficult to believe a man of his talents could be so wasteful. For Federer to break serve only once in a match when he had 17 break points – ten of them in the opening set – speaks more about the reputation of Nadal than any failings on the Swiss’s part.

At the end of his 21st consecutive victory on Court Philippe Chatrier, this time 6-3, 4-6, 6-3, 6-4, Nadal collapsed at the back of the court – where he does so much of his guard duty – and had to wipe the dirt from his back before climbing via a lines judge’s canvas chair into the posh boxes, hugging first his family and entourage, then Manuel Santana, the man who inspired Spain’s tennis rennaissance 40 years ago, and Crown Prince Felipe.

Nadal had just become only the second player since this championship went truly international in 1925 to win it three times in succession, the only other being Björn Borg, the Swedish phenomenon, who completed his hat-trick in 1980, defeating Vitas Gerulaitis, the American, for the loss of seven games. Borg went on to extend that sequence a further year – concurrently dominating Wimbledon.

What makes the Nadal story the more compelling is that we are talking about as normal a boy from as normal a family as it is possible to find. Yes, his father and uncles were talented athletes and he was bound to flex his brilliance in one sport. It is tennis’s great good fortune that Toni, his uncle and coach, thought he spotted something in a young Rafael and nurtured the talents with an uncompromising adhesion to telling moral and sporting values. Nadal is a prince among young men.

We thought, though, that when Federer defeated a wilting Nadal in the Hamburg Masters last month – the last two sets were 6-2, 6-0 in the final there, remember – he had finally figured out what had previously been an indecipherable mystery to him. He came into this tournament saying that he had never felt better, never been stronger, never been more confident. His progress had not been without mishap, dips in form and perils, but he had made it and, outwardly, seemed in control.

Last year, Nadal lost the first set of the final here 6-1 and it was as if Federer did not believe that he could sustain such form. A year on and every time the Swiss constructed a bridgehead to secure a one-set lead again, he managed to demolish it himself. There were two break points in the fourth game, five in the sixth and on three of those he took a full swing at a second serve. Still, he could not take advantage.

Inevitably, a reprieved Nadal pounced in the next game, breaking to love. Now, Federer had to review his strategy. He decided that he should move forward, to such an extent that during the course of the match he probably served and volleyed more times than he did against Nadal in last year’s Wimbledon final.

Federer punched away volleys on two consecutive points midway through the second set and, having unnerved Nadal, promptly broke serve to lead 4-3. It was to prove a false dawn for Federer fans.

Although he saw out that set, the nerves were on show at the start of the third. It does not take Nadal long to scent anyone’s discomfiture and he broke in the second game. So powerfully did he pound the ball that he punctured one in the middle of a rally. The new ball did not suit Federer because he blasted three successive forehands into the net, a sure sign that he was in his final falter.

Federer, who had hoped to join Don Budge and Rod Laver as those who have held the four grand-slam titles at the same time, said: “I need a game plan against Rafael. Against other guys I can do what I want to, but not against him. The easy way out would be to say I missed too many opportunities. You have to look at the opposition and he is so tough on break points.

“Eventually if I win this, the sweeter it will taste. I know I can do it now, especially given as well as I played in the last three French Opens.”

Paris master

21 Matches won by Rafael Nadal in three-year reign as French Open champion

62 Sets won by the Spaniard

7 Sets lost

53 Hours spent on court