Ben Pawlowski
RAFAEL Nadal and Carlos Alcaraz’s dreams of a fairytale Olympic medal were dashed after the dynamic Spanish duo were dumped out of the men’s doubles in Paris.
The pair, christened as ‘Nadalcaraz’ by their adoring fans, were comprehensively defeated 6-2, 6-4 by American fourth seeds Austin Krajicek and Rajeev Ram, regarded as two of tennis’ best specialist doubles players.
The highly-anticipated pairing of Nadal and Alcaraz had lit up the competition, with many predicting that the former and current kings of clay, with a combined 14 French Open titles to their name, would impress on Roland Garros’ clay surface.
In the first round, the Spanish duo had swept aside Argentina in straight sets before defeating the Dutch pair of Tallon Griekspoor and Wesley Koolhof in a 10-point tiebreaker, but the quarter-final clash against the Americans ultimately proved a step too far.
The defeat spells the end for Nadal’s Olympic career after he was thrashed by old rival Novak Djokovic 6-1, 6-4 in the men’s singles.
The Mallorca-born star won gold in the singles at Beijing 2008 and the doubles at Rio 2016.
Nadal had remained tight-lipped about his future with speculation swirling that his time on the court could soon come to an end – but after Wednesday’s match the 38-year-old gave the strongest hint yet that he may call time on his glittering career.
Asked whether he would be heading to the United States to prepare for the US Open, Nadal said: “It looks like not but I’m going to let you know soon. For me now, I can’t give you a clear answer, I need some time. But for me it looks difficult”.
Responding to a question about Alcaraz, 17 years his junior and widely hailed as his successor, Nadal said: “If I was 10 years younger, we would create a beautiful relationship on the court and share a lot of beautiful moments together. But that’s not going to happen. We’ll see if I keep playing the normal tour. But of course I will be supporting him from home and wishing him all the very best every single time. Even if I keep playing or not, I love tennis”.
Reflecting on the tournament, Spain’s greatest ever player added: “It was disappointing to not bring back a medal for Spain but that’s it. I tried my best in every single minute that I was on court, but it was not enough to achieve our goals. If that’s the last time, it’s an unforgettable feeling and emotion”.
There still may yet be a fairytale ending in the men’s doubles competition with British star Andy Murray, playing in his final tournament before retirement, through to the quarter finals after two dramatic tiebreaker wins alongside his partner Dan Evans.
Elsewhere, Alcaraz remains in contention for a medal in the men’s singles competition.
The two-time Wimbledon champion is yet to drop a set, with his quarter-final clash against US star Tommy Paul, whom he defeated at the same stage in this year’s Wimbledon, kicking off at midday on Thursday.
Alcaraz, 21, became the youngest man since Novak Djokovic in 2008 to progress to the last eight after triumphing 6-4, 6-2 over Roman Safiullin.
He could face Djokovic in the final if both he and the Serb win their remaining matches, prompting a rematch of last month’s Wimbledon clash.
Djokovic faces eighth seed Stefanos Tsitsipas in the quarters, and will hope to boost an underwhelming Olympics record for the 24-time Grand Slam champion, having never reached a final and winning just one Bronze medal.
