(CNN) A 15th grand slam title. A 10th French Open title. "La Decima."
But for Rafael Nadal, plagued by injuries and forced out of tennis's limelight over the past few seasons, Sunday's victory at Roland Garros was "unique."
A dominant 6-2 6-3 6-1 win over Stan Wawrinka ended a three-year grand slam drought for the Spaniard and the "King of Clay" is now back on his throne.
"It's something very, very special and unique. A very emotional moment," Nadal, who before Sunday had last won a grand slam title at the 2014 French Open, told CNN Sport's Ravi Ubha.
"I've had some tough moments with injuries, but that's part of my career, too. It makes things a little bit more difficult but when you win after all these things, it's more special.
"I've always loved what I'm doing. I've always been working hard to do the things I really like."
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Back from the brink
A lengthy injury list -- including trouble with his knees, wrist, and back -- saw Nadal slip to ninth in the world rankings at the end of last year. But 2017 has seen a resurgence.
After being ousted in five sets by rival Roger Federer at the Australian Open, the Spaniard has been almost unstoppable.
Heading into Roland Garros, he'd lost just one match on clay in 2017. And from the moment he stepped on court in Paris, few dared to bet against him lifting the title.
For the third time in his career, Nadal won every set at a grand slam. He also pulls away from Pete Sampras in the men's all-time grand slam list; only Federer, with 18, has won more.
But numbers aside, there were other reasons for Nadal to be emotional after his most recent victory.
This was the last time the Mallorcan's uncle Toni Nadal -- who was invited on court to present the trophy on Sunday -- will see his nephew lift the French Open title after the pair agreed to end their coaching partnership in late 2016.
The King of Clay over the years
A lot has changed since a 19-year-old Rafael Nadal became only the second man in history to win Roland Garros at the first attempt. The bulging biceps, long hair and headband remain, but the Spaniard's sense of style has certainly changed.
Nadal went into his first French Open as an inexperienced 18-year-old and emerged a grand slam champion -- beating Roger Federer in the semifinals on his 19th birthday. The 2005 season was the birth of what would go on to be Nadal's classic look: sleeveless top and three-quarter length shorts.
By the following year, Nadal had cemented his place among tennis' elite and was developing a fearsome reputation on clay. This time wearing a slightly less garish light blue, Nadal picked up his second consecutive French Open title by becoming the first man to beat Roger Federer in a grand slam final.
In 2007, the then 20-year-old Nadal's status as the 'King of Clay' was sealed. Defeat to Federer at the Masters Series in Hamburg ended an 81-match unbeaten streak on clay, which remains a men's Open Era record today. At that year's French Open, Nadal opted for the reverse of 2006's top-bandana combo -- this time with matching trainers to boot.
A year later, Nadal opted for a variation on his debut French Option look, this time sporting an all-green combo. Nadal reached world No. 1 for the first time in his career in 2008, helped by his fourth consecutive Roland Garros title -- matching Bjorn Borg's record of consecutive trophies, while also becoming only the seventh man to win a grand slam without dropping a set.
Nadal's first dramatic transformation came in 2009. Gone were the sleeveless shirts and three-quarter lengths, in came the sleeves and fluorescent, clashing colors. Perhaps it was the sleeves restricting the powerful arms (or maybe a knee injury), but Nadal suffered the first of only two French Open defeats. Despite a shock fourth-round loss to Robin Soderling, Nadal set a record of 31 consecutive wins at Roland Garros.
In 2010, Nadal bounced back from the 2009 disappointment with a daring multicolored number. He went on to exact revenge on Soderling, beating him in the final after the Swede had upset Federer in the quarterfinals. Federer's failure to reach the semis meant Nadal regained the world No. 1 spot, while it was also the second time he won the French Open without dropping a set.
The following year, Nadal dialed down the brightness, instead choosing to return to one of his earliest Roland Garros styles. And it worked -- he maintained his No. 1 ranking throughout the clay court season and beat perennial rival Federer in the final.
Perhaps in an attempt to gain the upper hand on opponents by blending into the clay, Nadal opted for an orange-ish-red look for the first time at the French Open. It appeared to work, as Nadal dropped just 30 games in the first five rounds, before beating Djokovic in four sets in the final to claim his seventh Roland Garros title and surpass Borg as the tournament's most successful player.
The 2013 French Open was the debut of Nadal's latest wardrobe change: the short shorts. In an all-Spanish final, Nadal defeated David Ferrer in straight sets -- although bizarrely dropped from fourth in the world to fifth after his victory.
Perhaps a sign of entering into his late 20s, Nadal's colors switched from fluorescent to more mellow tones. Despite being hampered by injuries and suffering surprise defeats early in the clay court season, Nadal grinded out arguably his most impressive Roland Garros victory. Another victory in the final against Djokovic took him to 14 grand slams (level with Pete Sampras) and it was his fifth straight French Open triumph.
Nadal's struggle to find form continued into 2015's clay court season, dropping outside of the world's top five for the first time since 2005. Looking like an athletic version of the Cookie Monster, Nadal crashed out of the French Open in the quarterfinals to Djokovic. It ended his 39-match unbeaten run and marked just his second defeat on the Parisian clay.
The following year, the shorts got even shorter and the two-tone top returned as Nadal exited the French Open in the third round -- although this time it was a wrist injury that defeated him. Despite the disappointment, there was another milestone for Nadal as he became only the eighth man to reach 200 grand slam wins.
Nadal debuted his strong blue look against Benoit Paire in the first round and the King of Clay went on to complete "'La Decima" of 10 Roland Garros titles.
Nadal now turns his attention to Wimbledon.
Moving away from his beloved clay courts and with Federer expected to return to the men's draw, tougher tests lie ahead for the Spaniard on the grass.
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But for now, at least, Nadal reigns supreme.