Vardan

16 >The number of Grand Slam tournaments played by Mariano Puerta before reaching his first Slam final.

15> The number of wins Nadal has chalked up over Argentinian opponents in 21 matches.

13 >Puerta is the 13th unseeded player to reach a final in Paris. Four non-seeds have taken the laurels, most recently last year's winner Gaston Gaudio.

10 >Ten years ago Mariano Puerta lost here in the Boys' Junior final to Mariano Zabaleta. He is the first player to have lost in both the Senior and junior final in Paris.

9> The final between Rafael Nadal and Mariano Puerta was the 9th between lefties in a Grand Slam tournament, the second in Paris after the 1946 final between Marcel Bernard and Jaroslav Drobny.

7> The Coupe des Mousquetaires is Rafael Nadal's 7th tour title.

6> Rafael Nadal is the sixth Spaniard to win in Paris. He joins compatriots Andres Gimeno (1972), Sergi Bruguera (1993, 1994), Carlos Moya (1998), Albert Costa (2002) and Juan Carlos Ferrero (2003) in the record books.

6> The French Open was the 6th title of Rafael Nadal's 2005 season, bringing him level with Roger Federer.

5> Rafael Nadal is the 5th southpaw to win in Paris since 1925, the last being Thomas Muster in 1995. The last lefty to win a Grand Slam tournament was Goran Ivanisevic in 2001 at Wimbledon.

4 >For the sixth time the tournament was won by a number 4 seed. The last number four seed to take the laurels was Ecuadorian Andres Gomez…a lefty like Nadal.

3> For the third year running an unseeded player reached the final in Paris. Mariano Puerta didn't do as well as Gaston Gaudio who won last year, falling at the final hurdle just like Martin Verkerk in 2003.

3> After pocketing the €880,000 which goes to the winner, Rafael Nadal (19 years old) has now won more than three million dollars since he turned pro in 2002.

1> The number of times Rafael Nadal has played the French Open. Before him only Sweden's Mats Wilander had ever won the tournament in his debut tournament (in 1982).

Nadal - Puerta: the figures Sunday, June 5, 2005 Check out all the figures from the magnificent 2005 French Open final between Spain's Rafael Nadal (n°4) and Argentina's Mariano Puerta.

I'll be back at Roland Garros… I hope to have a second opportunity because then I might be able to play like I did today. Because the way I played today, if it had been another player, I could have won. But against me I had the best player in the world and he played at a maximum level and he played an excellent match.

I could have handled a fifth set… I'm not saying I lost today because I was tired. I was able to play three-and-a-half hours. If there was a fifth set, I would have been able to play it. I had the impression that physically I felt better than he did for a fifth set. I saw him have doubts at a certain moment, and I know that during those two weeks we never saw Nadal have any doubts at all.

When I went onto the court, he was the favourite - it was clear to me. But at the end of the fourth, I didn't see him that way anymore.

On nearly pushing Nadal into a fifth and deciding set…I felt that if I won the fourth set, we would have been both at 50/50 [to win]. At that moment, I didn't consider he was any more the favourite. In the fifth set, it could have been either of us. We were 50/50.

Shares his impression of Rafael Nadal… The strength he has in his legs, the way he explodes when he steps into the court to hit a passing shot. He obliges you to volley and you have to pass him twice. Also, he's very calm. He's cool. I think he has the mental strength to beat records.

Mariano Puerta (translated from Spanish) On his performance… I am very pleased. Well, not as much as I could be. I'm very proud, though, that I was the last Argentinean to be eliminated in this tournament… I believe that in a certain way I was resuscitated. I was able to achieve things that very few people would have been able to achieve.

On his childhood aspirations… You can never think that you can become a great player. But since I was a little kid, I always wanted to be a tennis player. I was even dreaming to be a professional tennis player, but I was not thinking about a ranking. It was just a dream for me.

On Mats Wilander comparing him to Björn Borg… I would like to thank Mats Wilander for saying those things about me. I'm very pleased. But to compare me to Borg, it's not possible. My goal is to improve day after day on all surfaces. I hope that I will have a good result at Wimbledon. After that, I will keep working to improve all parts of my game

What did King Juan Carlos tell him after the match?... He congratulated me a lot. He said it's incredible what I did. He thanked me. He said that the Queen had to leave. But he congratulated me. He gave me best wishes for my future.

On a possible fifth set… In any kind of match in five sets, you are always 50/50 because you are two-sets-all. It's up to the one who will make the greatest efforts who will win. I was a bit nervous at that moment for the fifth set.

Rafael Nadal On earning his first Grand Slam title…It's something you can't explain. These moments are very strong. These moments are moments when everything comes upon you. All the work you've been doing during all those years, the sacrifices. When you reach your goal, it's an extraordinary moment.