Costa claims first Grand Slam with dominant display

Ferrero falls to fellow Spaniard in French Open men's final while battle of the Williams sisters proves to be major disappointment

What had been projected as a rite of passage for Juan Carlos Ferrero in yesterday's men's singles final at the French Open here yesterday was transformed into the fulfilment of a career for his Spanish compatriot Albert Costa, going on 27 and often perceived as little more than a bosun in the armada.

Costa, seeded No 20, who had not won a tournament of any kind for three years, defeated the 22-year-old Ferrero, 6-1, 6-0, 4-6, 6-3, reaping the benefit of hard-earned experience and a rigorous training regimen in the company of his friend and rival, Alex Corretja. Two months ago, the pair put their bodies through a routine that included running 1,000 metres four times in succession, with three-and-a-half minutes' rest in between.

It was then discovered that Costa had a pulse rate of 40 – nowhere near as slow as that of Miguel Indurain, the great Spanish cyclist, whose rate of 28 seemed barely a pulse at all, but enough to enable him to out-last the defending champion, Gustavo Kuerten, Guillermo Canas, the seemingly indefatigable Argentinian, and Corretja en route to the final.

Costa played so brilliantly in the opening two sets yesterday that the forlorn Ferrero was made to seem a shadow of the competitor whose solid serving and consistent driving from the baseline had worn down the resilience of Argentina's Gaston Gaudio and bamboozled both Andre Agassi and Marat Safin. Suddenly, the right ankle Ferrero had twisted in practise during the opening week began to throb again.

As Costa's pounding knocked the stuffing out of Ferrero's game, and crafty drop shots lured him forward into traps, his confidence was drained to the point where he did not seem to know how to put two shots together, and a sense of embarrassment pervaded the Philippe Chatrier Court.

The first two sets, which slipped away in only 47 minutes, plus a 26-minute rain delay after Ferrero held for 1-1 in the first set, made the Williams sisters' contest on Saturday seem epic in comparison.

Thankfully, for the sake of an afternoon worth spending in the clay court capital of the world, the pain in Ferrero's ankle began to ease, and the 11th seed worked his way into the match in a five-minute spell during which he secured the first two games of the third set and the crowd's admiration.

Although Costa recovered the break in the third game, he was unable to crack Ferrero's resolve at 2-2, in spite of creating four break points. Ferrero, who finished that game with an ace, subsequently gained the composure to break Costa for the set in the 10th game, taking particular satisfaction in foxing his opponent with a drop shot.

Ferrero was unfortunate to clip the net cord in losing his serve for 1-2 in the fourth set, atoning by saving three break points that would have taken Costa to 4-1, and then breaking to level at 3-3. That was the end of Ferrero's resistance. He was broken for 3-4, and double-faulted on the concluding point of the match after two-and-a-half hours.

Picking himself up after falling on his back in celebration, Costa made his way to the competitors' box and hugged his fiance, Cristina, and their 13-month old twin-daughters, Claudia and Alma. The wedding takes place next Friday, with an extra £520,000 in the kitty.

Richard Gasquet also won a singles title here yesterday at the expense of a compatriot. The 15-year-old from Béziers, who lost to Costa in the first round of the main draw, defeated Laurent Recouderc, a regular practice partner, 6-0, 6-1, in the final of the junior championships.

Gasquet, who made such an impact as a qualifier at the Monte Carlo Open in April, will now test himself on grass as a wild card at the Stella Artois Championships at Queen's Club, London, which start today.

Drawn against Neville Godwin, an experienced South African, in the first round, Gasquet, of successful, will go on play Tim Henman, the British No 1, who has first-round bye. "I never played on grass before," Gasquet said, adding that he had also entered the qualifying tournament for Wimbledon.

Greg Rusedski, the British No 2, who missed most of the clay-court season to nurse a strained neck, has also received a bye in the first round at Queen's. He will play the winner of a first round match between Mark Philippoussis and Martin Lee, the British No 3.