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It may not have been up to the standard of the masterpieces hanging in the famous galleries of this artistic city but Gustavo Kuerten drew his own picture of greatness on Sunday afternoon at Roland Garros.

First the charismatic Brazilian defeated Spain's Alex Corretja 6-7 7-5 6-2 6-0 to win his third French Open title.

Then, just as he had done after his fourth round match with American Mike Russell, he etched a heart with the head of his racket in the clay of centre court before laying down inside it as if he could not bear to leave the red clay he adores.

"I love this place," he said.

"It is really a magic place for me. All my dreams are coming true here, it is a great feeling."

Next he stripped off his tennis shirt, pulled on a tee-shirt proclaiming 'I love Roland Garros' and kissed the Musketeers Cup as the Samba drumming fans chanted 'Guga' and turned this enclave of Paris into a little part of Rio.

Unfortunately, the World number one and arguably currently the most exciting men's tennis player, also confirmed his intention to pull out of Wimbledon, claiming he "needed to rest a little".

There is no doubt British fans will miss the Brazilian with the windmill backhand and some of the most penetrative shots in tennis.

However, they might not have appreciated the clay-court war which Kuerten and Corretja waged on Sunday in conditions which at times resembled a desert sand storm.

"It was like playing in a hurricane on court in the first set," said Kuerten, who wears contact lenses.

"It was tough to play well and I had to fight. I think it was a good comeback by me and in the end I was playing my best tennis. I am just so happy to fulfil all my dreams with my third title."

The triumph moved him alongside Ivan Lendl, who also won three titles here, and ahead of the likes of legends Rod Laver and Roy Emerson, who could only manage two each.

There is every chance that Kuerten, only 24, could go on to emulate or even surpass the great Bjorn Borg, who won six titles in Paris.

As it was Kuerten received his trophy from two-time French champion Jim Courier after grinding his way to a victory which was rarely pretty but in the end entirely effective.

Corretja must take much of the blame for the lack of vibrant spectacle.

He is a confirmed baseliner - in other words a man prepared to play all day and all night just to win a single point.

At times he hits the ball from yards behind the baseline, looping it up with huge amounts of spin time and time again waiting for an opening.

It is admirably patient and wonderfully skilful but there are times when observing paint dry would seem a preferable pastime to watching the Spaniard, who also lost in the 1998 final here to big pal Carlos Moya.

The first set alone seemed to last an age - one hour and 13 minutes of attritional tennis with Kuerten crashing away with his powerful groundstrokes and Corretja standing firm as a brick wall.

They swapped service breaks on two occasions as everything the Brazilian conjured up came back in conditions which varied from sunshine to light showers to sweeping dust squalls.

Inevitably, the set went to a tie-break but it seemed it was Kuerten most affected by the wind, a sudden gust holding up the ball and blowing dust into Kuerten's eyes to give Corretja set point.

The Brazilian then double-faulted to hand Corretja the set.

The second set was equally tight, this time two net cords in the 11th game helping Kuerten save a crucial service and he again upped the pace in the next game to take the set and level the match.

At last Kuerten was beginning to look like the champion who had blown away Juan Carlos Ferrero in the semi-final in such supreme attacking fashion.

Suddenly his backhand had that familiar whirlwind motion and the forehand snap had penetration.

He coasted to the third set, Corretja receiving a warning for ball abuse after he crashed a ball into the stands, revealing his frustrations.

The Spanish fire was almost spent, however, and the points were becoming shorter as Kuerten picked off his opponent at will.

Corretja slammed his racket into the clay dust once more in anger as he could find no answer to the Brazilian's brilliance in a one-sided final set.

And the end finally came after a fabulous last game in which Corretja saved three match points before Kuerten, the Brazilian musketeer, wielded that forehand like a rapier to apply the coup de grace.

"He played supremely well," admitted Corretja, who had to deal with a crowd solidly behind the Brazilian.

"The third set was the key. I lost my game and he was just too good for me in the fourth set."

Wimbledon will decide on Monday whether to change their normal seeding system, in the past based on ability on grass, and instead follow the world rankings.