Carlos Alcaraz and Rafael Nadal ended their doubles feat at the Paris Olympics after losing to Americans Austin Krajicek and Rajeev Ram in the men’s quarterfinals. The Spaniards lost to No.4 seeds 6-2, 6-4. This was Nadal’s last Olympics as he looks to retire from competitive tennis for good.
Alcaraz and Nadal, 38, fought hard and claimed the second round but their lack of doubles reps got the better of them. This was leveraged by Krajicek and Ram who fought back with determination and resilience to stay in the tournament. This was the 22-time Grand Slam champion’s second defeat at the Paris Olympics, with the first being to Novak Djokovic.
In an after-match interview, Nadal thanked his fans and supporters for the love. He shared that this may have been the last time he stepped on the court, an end to one stage. Nadal said he wanted to focus on the Olympic Games and then decide on his next move. He is looking forward to disconnecting and will take time to decide the next stage.
The former World No.1 is disappointed about not bagging an Olympic medal for Spain this time. At the 2008 Beijing Olympics, Nadal won a gold medal in singles and at the 2016 Rio Olympics gold in doubles. He didn’t compete at the Tokyo Games.
Nadal acknowledged the doubles partnership with Alcaraz. He believes if he was 10 years younger, they would have ruled the court and shared a lot of beautiful moments. The senior Spaniard said that’s not going to happen as age is catching up on him fast. However, Nadal looks forward to supporting Alcaraz and cheering him on.
