Roland Garros has unveiled a statue of Rafael Nadal on Thursday, ahead of the commencement of the French Open, the second Grand Slam championship of the 2021 season.

In honour of the 13-time winner of the tournament, the statue is located next to the general public entrance and the Jardin des Mousquetaires. Made by artist Diez Fernandez, the statue of steel stands at three metres tall, nearly five metres wide and two metres deep. Nadal is sculptured hitting his signature lefty forehand, which has helped him to a 100-2 record at the clay-court major.

The third seed will begin his pursuit of a 14th Coupe des Mousquetaires against Aussie Alexei Popyrin. World No. 1 Novak Djokovic and eighth seed Roger Federer are also on Nadal’s half of the draw.