Many expert judges, with Bjorn Borg paramount, could not have been more wrong. Plenty of others had their worst fears confirmed. The signs previously were ominous and Rafael Nadal produced probably the most emphatic performance of his tennis career to grind the morale of Roger Federer so deep into the clay of Roland Garros that it might never recover.

For Nadal it was a display of sheer brilliance. We all knew he was a character with determination and a purpose that few players in the history of the game could match and here was consummate proof with a 6-1, 6-3, 6-0 drubbing of a player many would have loved to declare the greatest player the world has ever known. Such claims need a little reassessment once the Parisian dust has finally settled but one unofficial title now seems to have been settled; this 22 year-old wonder from Majorca is now almost undeniably the finest ever on clay.

Watching this total destruction of a player totally revered by his peers and fans alike was a strange experience. On one hand there was the knowledge that you were witnessing something very special, the like of which has not been seen on Court Philippe Chatrier for many years. Yet there was also an element of sadness because it seemed almost wrong to be staring at the normally so imperious Federer being pummelled to embarrassing levels of defeat in the way he has done to so many others over the years.

Nadal seemed to share the very same point of view. When Federer’s final forehand went long and a fourth successive French Open title was secured, he did not fall to his knees and roll triumphantly in the dirt as he has done on previous victorious moments. Instead he quietly raised his hands to the heavens and quickly advanced to the net where he would commiserate with the opponent he had left totally devastated.

Surely Nadal will now go on to overhaul Borg’s collection of six French Open titles. And who is to say on the basis of this dominance he will not become the first player since the ice cool Swede to wipe the dust off his shoes, set foot on the grass and add the Wimbledon title in exactly four weeks time?

His play throughout the fortnight of Roland Garros has been magnificent in every sense of the word. Seven successive players on the opposing side of the net have been totally crushed like the red bricks that make up the substance of the court, the intensity and drive never dropping from round one to the final.

But what now for Federer? Never before has he been subjected to such personal torment with the whole of the tennis world watching. This was the title he craved more than any other. This was the opponent he knew he had to overcome. This was the match he had been thinking about for exactly a year since losing last year’s final. This was the tactical dilemma that he had been trying so desperately to solve. Could things have honestly turned out worse?

Only briefly in the midst of the second set did he look anything like on terms with Nadal. Otherwise, Federer’s inferiority was apparent to even the most occasional of witnesses. His serve was broken early each set, his normally so dependent forehand was horribly littered with errors and when he tried to be the aggressor by playing serve and volley tennis, he was almost passed at will.

Thankfully, he did appreciate the irony of the situation and when the time came to again accept the runner’s up prize he admitted: “Oui, c’est moi”. "Yes, it is me" - because many might well have been wondering whether some under-skilled imposter had slipped on Federer’s clothes and managed to make it onto court as a ruse.

For Nadal this was a stunning achievement, yet it might only turn out to be a staging post in a great journey that takes him to many, many more triumphs in the game. For Federer it was his own worst nightmare and the aftermath over the next few months will be intriguing to behold.