Rafael Nadal, 32, admitted that his desire to clinch an 11th French Open title today is fired by his growing realisation that the end of his career may not be too far away.

The Spaniard, with 16 majors to his name, will play his 24th Grand Slam final at Roland Garros against Dominic Thiem who is in his first. Today's victory will give Nadal an 11th title in Paris and equal Margaret Court's all-time record for wins at the same Slam event - in her case, the Australian Open from 1960 and 1973 Nadal still trails great rival Roger Federer by four major titles although the Swiss star is more than four years older. "For me, the motivation to play here always is high, high as possible," said Nadal.