So what was Roger Federer to do with the elusive French Open trophy once again in sight and Rafael Nadal looming larger than ever across the net?

Stay back and rally? Definitely not. Nadal was too quick, too powerful and too steady, with unforced errors creeping in as rarely as sunshine during this tournament.

Why not attack the net? More sensible indeed, yet Nadal’s dipping passing shots were so precise, so forceful that they kept requiring Federer to dig balls out of the dirt or twist his neck — smoothly, of course — to watch a winner land on the sideline or the baseline.

No, the answer for the millions of Federer fans worldwide who would like nothing better than for their man to win the only Grand Slam singles title he lacks was that there was no solution available to Federer in his current state of form and Nadal’s current state of grace.

In a final that rarely resembled anything other than one-way traffic, Nadal was at his clay-covering, forehand-whipping finest as he won his fourth straight French Open by beating up on the erratic, increasingly dispirited Federer.

The victory was the finishing touch on one of the most dominant performances in Grand Slam history. The left-handed Nadal,

whose record at Roland Garros is now 28-0, did not lose a set in

this tournament.

“I would have hoped, of course, to get more today than four games,” Federer said in French in a quiet, slightly sheepish voice as he addressed the crowd. “But Rafa is really very, very strong this year. He dominated this tournament like perhaps never before. Like Bjorn. He deserves this title.”

Nadal, clearly sensitive to the situation, kept his celebration to a respectful minimum. After Federer’s last forehand approach sailed long, Nadal simply raised both arms and smiled before shuffling to the net to shake Federer’s hand.

“First of all, I don’t prepare my celebrations; I do them as I feel them,” Nadal said. “Considering my relationship with Roger, it seemed like the right way to go about it.” Nadal now leads their head-to-head series, 11-6, and has won 9 of their 10 matches on clay.