Rewind: Rafael Nadal's first French Open title in 2005

PARIS — Lars Burgsmuller remembers seeing the draw for the 2005 French Open and feeling his heart sink.

"I remember that I was a little sad about the draw," Burgsmuller told USA TODAY Sports in a telephone interview. "I knew that he was going to be a tough player for me. Everyone was talking bout him. He had good form. He was on the way up. Everyone knew that he would be very, very good."

Rafael Nadal was Burgsmuller's first opponent. Nadal is now considered the greatest clay-court player of all time, a champion at the French Open nine times in the last decade and holder of a sterling 70-1 record at Roland Garros.

Nadal, then 19, beat Burgsmuller, a German ranked No. 96, 6-1, 7-6 (4), 6-1. It was Nadal's first match at the French Open, and the only one he would play away from this tournament's two main courts, contested on Court No. 1, the well-liked "bullring arena."

Nadal in 2005 was a kid on the rise with a fast-kicking lefty forehand and expectation to be something special. He had won all three clay-court leadup tournaments, in Monte Carlo, Barcelona and Rome.

"We wanted to win," said Toni Nadal, Rafael's uncle and coach, in an interview with USA TODAY Sports. "If you ask me before the beginning of the tournament (that year), 'Do you want (Rafael) to make the final?' No. I wanted him to win. I believed that. Rafael was the best player on clay in that moment."

It's easy to look back now and admire greatness, but Nadal's arrival at this tournament 10 years and one week ago already was generating buzz. He wore a sleeveless shirt and capris, the expectation for him to win here as big as his biceps.

"I think he was a like a hurricane coming into those two weeks," said Carole Bouchard, a Paris-based freelance journalist. "He was a completely different look and attitude than Roger (Federer) and the other guys. He was like a rock star.

"We called him 'the matador'. He was so powerful. He was so young. Nineteen years old and he was beating everyone, but that felt normal."

Nadal would tick through that 2005 draw with efficiency. After beating Burgsmuller, he took out 46th-ranked Xavier Malisse in straight sets, then fellow teenager Richard Gasquet in three. He got by veteran Sebastien Grosjean in four sets and compatriot David Ferrer in the quarters.

The test came in the semifinals against Roger Federer, the world No. 1, whom he had split two hardcourt matches with so far in his career. They had never met on clay.

"When a kid comes up the ranks, there's always a few whispers and then suddenly names are on everyone's lips. Nadal, at that time, was there," said Leif Shiras, a Tennis Channel commentator. "It's sort of one of those phenomenal moments, when those whispers are realized. That happened against Federer. It made us realize what a warrior this guy was.."

Nadal, as history knows, would beat Federer, and then little-known Mariano Puerta of Argentina, ranked No. 37, in a four-set final.

He's the youngest Grand Slam champion in the last 25 years, and perhaps the last man to win a major as a teenager.

"When I won the first time here, for me was in that moment the most important day of my career," Nadal told reporters last week. "After that victory I came back to hotel and I said, 'OK, I won the most important thing that I can win in tennis. So then I gonna play with less pressure, more calm the rest of my career.' The real thing is completely the opposite. Every year you play with more and more pressure."

Again the pressure mounts for Nadal this week as a quarterfinal showdown looms Wednesday against world No. 1 Novak Djokovic.

Nadal's form has been questioned, his clay-court prowess in doubt, but the kid of 10 years ago is still chugging away, as undaunted as he was when he walked out to face Burgsmuller.

"I told myself that year, 'No shame that I lost the to French Open winner,'" said Burgsmuller, 39, now a radiation specialist back home in Essen, Germany. "Then, years after, I realized that he didn't lose a match for the next five years. Now when I finish my career, I look back and realize it was an honor to play against him. It's one of the matches that I really remember."

And does Burgsmuller think Nadal will win here again, a 10th title in 2015?

"I would say he has a very good chance," the German said, chuckling a little. "I would pick him yes. I will say he's my favorite."