The Spanish tennis selectors, David Ferrer and Anabel Medina, announced this Wednesday at the facilities of the Reial Club Tenis de Barcelona (RCTB) the teams that will compete in the Paris Olympic Games, from July 27 to August 4. And, as expected, due to the will expressed by both in recent times, Rafael Nadal (38 years old) and Carlos Alcaraz (21) will form one of the couples for the doubles modality. Spain will, therefore, have a spectacular duo, bringing together the champion of 22 majors and the young man from Murcia, recent champion of Roland Garros, two in the world and with three majors already in the file.
“If nothing prevents it, Rafa and Carlos will play together in Paris,” confirmed Ferrer, who, however, is not yet clear which will be the second pairing, in which Marcel Granollers, current number two, will be accompanied by Pablo Carreño or Alejandro Davidovich. The Asturian – bronze at the Tokyo 2021 Games – and the Malaga – 32nd on the current list – complete the men’s roster. After eight months of absence due to an elbow injury that forced him to undergo surgery, the first of them (876th) will participate in the event thanks to the resource of the ranking protected, like Nadal (264th). On the other hand, she will not be employed by Paula Badosa, who has finally decided to resign because she only has two more options until the end of the season.
The women’s team will be made up of Sara Sorribes (55th) and Cristina Bucsa (67th), the two players who have achieved direct access by classification and who, in addition, will try to prolong the good feelings obtained this year in Madrid, where they won the title of hand. It is unknown for now who will make up the couple in the mixed doubles. In any case, the captains are confident that the tennis players can win several medals, taking into account that the event will be held at the Roland Garros facilities and on clay. “In Paris, the Spanish have always done well,” Medina noted. “He couldn’t achieve it as a player, so I hope to do it now as a coach,” said Ferrer, enthusiastic about the idea of being able to field Nadal and Alcaraz together.
“It makes us all excited. Rafa is a great doubles player, who already won a medal in Rio (with Marc López), and Carlos has played less, but he has so much potential that he will surely do very well,” said the coach, in statements collected by the EFE agency. ; “I have seen how Rafa has evolved in the tournaments he has played in and I think he has done very well; He had bad luck with the draw (in Paris, where he was paired in the first round with Alexander Zverev), but I think that if it had been another player’s turn he could have gained the necessary rhythm to be in the final rounds. It is important that he arrives mentally fresh.”
July 4th deadline
The Mallorcan and Alcaraz will combine the doubles with the individual modality. They have never formed together and, a priori, it seems difficult for you to rehearse before landing in Paris. The Murcian will face the grass tour in the coming weeks, with Queen’s and Wimbledon as objectives, while the Spaniard will continue training at his academy – he already does it on clay – after ruling out the great Londoner. Depending on the sensations, before the Olympic event it could be tested in a preparatory event such as Hamburg (ATP 500) or Gstaad (250). If there are no setbacks involved, Nadal will participate in his fourth Games, after having achieved two golds in Beijing (2008) and Rio (2016).
The Royal Spanish Tennis Federation must communicate to the International Federation (ITF) the names of the chosen tennis players, and July 4, coinciding with Wimbledon, is the deadline to ratify the teams. During the event at the RCTB, Medina specified that Badosa “only has two left rankings protected”, and “points are not distributed in the Games” and “it is focused on recovering its best level”. The 26-year-old Catalan, who is currently 118th, has been suffering from a complicated back injury for just over a year—vertebral fracture of the L4—which has prevented her from having continuity and which forces her to moderate her presence on the slopes. .
“Due to my current situation with my injury, unfortunately I will not be able to go to the Olympic Games, something I was very excited about. It has been a very complicated decision for me to have to give up playing for my country,” he said through his social networks; “Due to the calendar and the changes in surface (from grass to sand), my back cannot respond to that demand. I would like my professional situation to be different, but since this injury, I have to take my career differently and give up things that are very difficult for me. And I have no choice but to accept it.”
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