With clouds looming over the French Open men’s final, Rafael Nadal found a way to make the sun in his tennis world shine again. Nadal faced down Robin Soderling, the same opponent who knocked him out in the fourth round last year, a harbinger for a regressive year of sore knees and lackluster results. But healthy and confident once again, the Mallorcan King of Clay raced to a straight-set win over the giant-chopping Swede, 6-4, 6-2, 6-4.

With the victory, Nadal captured his fifth French Open title and climbed back to the No. 1 ranking after falling as low as No. 4 earlier in the season. As if with a magic eraser, he seemingly rubbed off the lone blemish in his otherwise perfect record on the distinctive red clay of Roland Garros. At 38-1, he has made this tournament his to lose since 2005. He went undefeated on clay courts this year and, incredibly, did not lose a set in Paris.

Raising the Coupe de Mousquetaires once again, Nadal was giddy as he thanked the fans for their support in French. Then, in Spanish, he showed appreciation for being able to play at Roland Garros the past six years.

Soderling laughed after the match and congratulated Nadal, saying, “If you continue to play like this you will for sure have the chance to win many more.”

Sodering came into Sunday’s match as a dangerous underdog with a booming serve and intimidating power off both wings. With the help of his coach, Magnus Norman, he has improved his fitness and mental toughness. And it paid off. Soderling came to Paris seeded fifth, putting him on the same half of the draw as the top seed, Roger Federer. He knocked off the defending champion for the second straight year, this time in the quarterfinals, energizing fans in his home country and setting up the rematch with Nadal in the final.

Nadal used a combination of high-percentage first serves, indefatigable defense, varied shots and driving topspin winners to keep the flat-hitting Swede off-balance throughout the match. Once again at his counterpunching best, Nadal was a magician, converting Soderling’s would-be winners into winning opportunities for himself. The bounce was clearly back in his knees as Nadal chased down shot after shot, wearing his taller opponent down physically and mentally. Soderling had 45 unforced errors.

During his time off last year, when he skipped Wimbledon to rest his knees, Nadal and his uncle made some changes of their own. They worked to strengthen Nadal’s serve, adding more pace to what had been primarily a spinning kick serve. They focused on initiating offense in order to end points more quickly on faster hard courts, which can take a heavier toll on knees and other body parts. And they limited his schedule, playing every other tournament this spring.

Sunday’s final was billed as a grudge match, but Nadal and his uncle, Toni Nadal, said all along that it was about getting back to winning tennis, that the opponent made no difference. Still, the easy victory seemed to confirm the limiting effect tendinitis had on Nadal’s game last year.

Soderling now finds himself in the same position as Andy Murray, who also lost his first two Grand Slam finals. For more than half a decade, Federer and Nadal have held a miserly stranglehold on major championships. Only Novak Djokovic and Juan Martin del Potro have broken their monopoly in recent years.

In the last game of the match, Nadal pushed full steam ahead to 40-love, and three championship points. When Soderling netted a backhand, Nadal slid onto his back, that sweet red clay once again plastered to his shirt, a giant smile on face, shining like the sun.