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PARIS: Olympic tennis begins on Saturday and the name of undisputed Roland Garros king Rafael Nadal is on everyone’s lips and as the curtains close on his illustrious career, he is planning another illustrious chapter.
This time last year, it looked like the Spaniard’s time might be coming to an end as he battled injuries and was so angry he could barely swing a racket.
But the pull of the Olympics on his beloved clay courts of Paris was too much to resist for the 38-year-old, whose mere presence overshadowed everything else.
Serbian top seed Novak Djokovic will make one last attempt to win the elusive Olympic title, while Iga Swiatek will seek to translate her dominance on clay into gold in women’s singles.
Two-time Olympic singles champion Andy Murray will play his final tournament, while German three-time Grand Slam champion Angelique Kerber is also withdrawing from the tournament.
Several high-profile withdrawals, including men’s singles top seed Jannik Sinner and Denmark’s Holger Rune, cast a pall over the opening of the tournament on Saturday.
But the prospect of Nadal trying to further expand his Olympic medal haul is enticing.
The dream of repeating the 2008 Beijing Olympics singles gold medal may be a luxury, although Djokovic may not be willing to face his French Open nemesis in the second round.
But his doubles partnership with Carlos Alcaraz – the 21-year-old who won Wimbledon this month for his fourth Grand Slam title – is exciting.
“I think this team will be the most watched at the Olympics,” six-time Grand Slam champion and 1992 Olympic doubles gold medalist Boyce Becker told Reuters. “No disrespect to other sports, maybe USA Basketball will be just as much anticipated, but for Spain this is a dream team.”
“Nadal is one of the greatest tennis players of all time and he is competing for the gold medal with his successor. It’s a great environment to play in and it would be great if they can do it.”
“They’re not known for their doubles skills, but Nadal won the Olympic gold medal in doubles (Rio 2016). It’s amazing and will probably go down in history.”
Nicolas Massu of Chile, who won doubles and singles gold medals at the 2004 Athens Olympics, can’t wait to see Nadal and Alcaraz face off.
“I know Nadal has been preparing for the Olympics for four or five weeks,” he told Reuters. “As a tennis fan it’s great to see two generations from the same country competing together. It’s very exciting.”
“They’re going to battle. Everybody wants to play against them.”
Alcaraz, fresh off a French Open and Wimbledon double, will be hoping to continue his run of success with a singles gold medal. Defending champion Alexander Zverev has other ideas, while 24-time Grand Slam champion Djokovic has unfinished business after losing in the Tokyo semifinals and missing out on bronze.
“I think Novak was very honest at the beginning of the year that his most important competition was the Paris Olympics,” said Becker, who will serve as a pundit for Eurosport on Europe’s Discovery+ channel.
“I think it’s natural that you want to win over that person who is not currently in your cabinet.”
It will be hard to top Swiatek, the contender for women’s singles gold, who defeated Italian Jasmine Paolini last month to win her third straight French Open title and fourth overall.
Swiatek was knocked out of the second round of the Tokyo Tennis Championships in tears, but on her favorite court, she dominated.
Competition for the women’s doubles gold medal will be intense, with Czechs Barbora Krejcikova and Katerina Siniakova set to defend their title. American top seeds Coco Gauff and Jessica Pegula and Italian pair Jasmine Paolini and Sara Errani are also strong contenders.
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