French Open Tennis 2013 Men's Final: TV Schedule, Start Time and Live Stream

The 2013 men's French Open final is set, and it will feature a decidedly Spanish flavor as No. 3 seed Rafael Nadal will face countryman and No. 4 seed David Ferrer on Sunday, according to Roland Garros.

Both men earned their way to the final, but they got there in very different manners. Most would probably have expected Nadal to breeze through the competition and Ferrer to grind wins out, but that wasn't the case. It took five hard-fought sets for Nadal to defeat world No. 1 Novak Djokovic in the semifinals by a score of 6-4, 3-6, 6-1, 6-7, 9-7 on Friday.

Ferrer, on the other hand, hasn't dropped a set and has looked dominant throughout the tournament. That obviously has something to do with the fact that he hasn't run into a "Big Four" opponent until now, but even Nadal dropped a set in each of his first two matches. Ferrer has had no such issues.

Even so, the statistics suggest that Nadal holds a big advantage. According to ATPWorldTour.com, Nadal holds a 19-4 record against Ferrer since they first played in 2004. Nadal is 16-1 against Ferrer on clay, which includes a 2-0 record at Roland Garros.

Ferrer's only clay victory over Nadal came way back in 2004 in Stuttgart, Germany, which was one year before Nadal's first French Open title. Three of Ferrer's wins against Nadal have come on hard courts, including one each at the U.S. and Australian Opens, so Ferrer does know how to beat his countryman in big matches.

Regardless of how it plays out, it should be an extremely interesting final. Here is everything you need to know about when and where to watch it, as well as how each man can potentially come out on top.

Where: Court Philippe Chatrier, Roland Garros, Paris, France

When: Sunday, June 9 at 9 a.m. ET

Watch: NBC

Live Stream: NBC Sports Live Extra

Keys to Nadal Win

Having won the past three French Open titles and seven of the past eight, Nadal is obviously favored to conquer the clay at Roland Garros yet again. With that said, he certainly can't enter the final expecting to steamroll his opponent.

Although Nadal did have to face Djokovic in the semifinals, the draw was quite favorable for the most part. He didn't have to deal with Andy Murray as he sat out the tournament, and Roger Federer was knocked out in the quarterfinals. So Nadal will only have to beat one of the "Big Four" in order to capture his eighth French Open championship.

Nadal obviously has the experience edge when it comes to Grand Slam finals, but there are other factors to consider. He beat Djokovic in what felt like a Grand Slam final, but Rafa has to be careful and can't afford to let his guard down. It would be very easy to rest on his laurels; however, that could lead to an upset.

Also, fatigue figures to be a factor for Nadal. His marathon match against Djokovic lasted over four hours, according to NBC News, and he doesn't have a lot of time to recuperate.

Nadal is in incredible physical condition, but his match against Djokovic was his first five-setter since returning from a knee injury that kept him out for seven months. In addition to that, it was just his second five-setter over the past 18 months, according to Adam Amin of ESPN.

That means Nadal would likely prefer to win in straight sets, if at all possible. The Spaniard normally has the advantage in longer matches and longer points, but being short and sweet will be key for Rafa if he wants to lift the Coupe des Mousquetaires yet again.

Keys to Ferrer Win

Ferrer has had some success against Nadal in Grand Slam tournaments in the past, but clay is a totally different animal. Nadal is easily the best shot maker on clay today and may very well be the best ever. Ferrer is a very crafty player who should be able to put up a fight, but he will likely need to play the match of his life in order to beat Nadal.

The one thing that Ferrer has going for him is the fact that he is the fresher player. Ferrer has won all 18 sets he has played in this year's French Open and has only had to play one tiebreaker, so fatigue won't be a problem. Ferrer is one of the most resilient players in the world anyway, so he'll be able to play all day on Sunday if need be.

Nadal had to expend a great deal of energy against Djokovic, so it's natural that he'll be feeling a bit weary at certain points. Nadal is normally head and shoulders above Ferrer from a talent perspective, but the fatigue factor actually evens the playing field to some degree and it will definitely play a big role if Ferrer manages to pull off the upset.

Ferrer is great when it comes to keeping the ball in play and staying alive in points, but that won't be enough to beat Nadal. He can't simply hit the ball back, because Nadal is too good at hitting winners. What Ferrer does need to do, though, is vary his shot selection in order to keep Nadal off-balance.

Ferrer has a wide array of shots, as he is capable of trading ground strokes, utilizing drop shots, playing angles and even changing speeds. He must empty his bag of tricks against Nadal because his best bet is to outsmart the seven-time French Open champion rather than beat him physically.

Also, since this will be Ferrer's first Grand Slam final, according to Roland Garros, he needs to make sure that the butterflies don't creep up and throw him off his game.

Ferrer is a veteran player at 31 years of age and he showed no signs of nervousness in dispatching of Jo-Wilfried Tsonga in front of a partisan crowd, though, so he should be able to handle it.

Prediction

It wouldn't be fair to discount Ferrer, as he has played some incredible tennis over the past couple weeks. But Nadal is at a totally different level than pretty much everyone else on clay, with the possible exception of Djokovic. Nadal has come too far to let an eighth French Open title slip through his fingers at this point.

Losing to Ferrer after that emotional victory over Djokovic would almost be a crime, and it's hard to imagine Nadal allowing it to happen. Nadal can't just rely on raw talent to beat Ferrer, though, as Ferrer is arguably the hardest-working and peskiest player in the game.

Nadal has never been one to take his opponents lightly, so look for him to win in straight sets by a score of 6-2, 7-5, 6-3.

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