Novak Djokovic, Olympic rings

Novak Djokovic, Olympic rings

Novak Djokovic seeks his first gold medal in this year's Paris Olympics. | @DjokerNole
Tennis returns to Roland Garros for the 2024 Paris Olympics. Rafael Nadal will pair with Carlos Alcaraz and possibly face Novak Djokovic in the second round. Iga Swiatek takes on the field, and there are more fun doubles teams than you can count.

As the world descends on Paris for the 2024 Summer Olympics, the tennis world doubles back.

We were here only two months ago, watching Carlos Alcaraz and Iga Swiatek carve out French Open titles, and now that very same Roland Garros venue will play host to the tennis leg of the Olympic Games.

It makes for a strange blip on the schedule to resume play on clay after leaving it behind for grass. Usually everyone shifts to hard courts at this point, but qualifying players have been training for more clay instead.

The fact that the event is on clay also heavily favors the clay specialists. We’re looking at you Iga, Rafa, Casper, and Carlos.

The Olympics is an interesting event for tennis. It only comes around once every four years, no ranking points are awarded, and the losing semifinalists have to play an extra match to determine the bronze medal. Not everyone gets to play (four players max per country in singles), not everyone even wants to play.

Some see it as a burden on the schedule when they could be chasing points, earning money, and preparing for Slams. Others hold it in higher regard than anything tennis offers. The love of country, the pride of playing for something bigger than yourself, the opportunity to experience the Olympic Village and all the surrounding events are a group of motivations replicated nowhere else.

One thing is for sure—the players who participate, and especially those who claim medals, take with them a unique and joyful experience they’ll remember for the rest of their lives.

Caroline Garcia Lights the Torch

Representing the host country of France, Caroline Garcia had the honor of carrying the Olympic torch in Versailles. What a special moment for the likable veteran.

Nadalcaraz

That seems to be the nickname most people have settled on for the exciting Spanish doubles pairing of Carlos Alcaraz and Rafael Nadal. By far the biggest storyline of this year’s event, it’s a generational delight we may only see this one time.

Flag-bearers

A few lucky tennis players will get to represent their countries as flag-bearers during the opening ceremonies:

Coco Gauff (USA)

Nicolás Jarry (Chile)

Danka Kovinic (Montenegro)

Elena Svitolina (Ukraine)

Withdrawals

The Olympic field lost several marquee players in the final days, even moments, leading up to the event. The men were hit harder than the women, but both fields will be missing some important pieces. Here is a list of notable withdrawals (not exhaustive).

Men

Jannik Sinner (Italy)

Holger Rune (Denmark)

Andy Murray (singles, Great Britain)

Hubert Hurkacz (Poland)

Andrey Rublev (Individual Neutral Athletes)

Ben Shelton (USA)

Jiri Lehecka (Czech Republic)

Jordan Thompson (Australia)

Women

Aryna Sabalenka (Individual Neutral Athletes)

Ons Jabeur (Tunisia)

Marketa Vondrousova (Czech Republic)

Madison Keys (USA)

Victoria Azarenka (Individual Neutral Athletes)

Anna Kalinskaya (Individual Neutral Athletes)

Singles Competitions

Men

Jannik Sinner’s withdrawal boosted Novak Djokovic to the No. 1 seed. The favorite to win has to be Carlos Alcaraz, though.

Clay court stud Casper Ruud and this year’s French Open runner-up Alexander Zverev (defending gold medalist from Tokyo 2020) will be expected to make deep runs.

As a 64-player draw, it will take six wins to claim the title. The Olympics has a history of churning out unexpected winners because it’s less about the individual. The stakes are different, and players react in different ways, so don’t be surprised if someone comes out of nowhere to win this thing.

So enjoy the full tournament, but there is one early matchup possibility that everyone is salivating over:

Round 2: Novak Djokovic vs. Rafael Nadal

Yes, they drew each other in the second round. So if Djokovic defeats Matthew Ebden (count on it) and Nadal defeats Marton Fuscovics (probable, but no guarantee), we’ll get a surprise matchup between the two all-time greats, which is remarkable because we had largely assumed they wouldn’t face each other again before Rafa retires (eventually). In fact, they haven’t faced off in more than two years.

But here we are. They could meet for the 60th time in Paris, on Rafa’s holy ground of Court Philippe-Chatrier. Both men are physically compromised, but this matchup would heavily favor Novak at the moment. Rafa had a nice run to the final last week in Bastad, but it’s obvious he is nowhere near his old form.

Still, never underestimate the heart of a champion. He’s probably still smarting from his nightmare first round draw against Zverev here on this very court two months ago, and he certainly wants to get that taste out his mouth. What better way than by besting one of his main rivals one last time?

Novak will appreciate the gravity of the moment, but he is also extremely hungry to win a gold medal this year, one of the increasingly few things he has not accomplished in his illustrious career, so don’t expect him to be merciful.

For his part, Rafa has two gold medals: singles in Bejing 2008, and doubles in Rio 2016. He had to skip the Olympics in 2012 and 2020 due to injuries.

The draw for both men is brutal the rest of the way. Fils, Tsitsipas, Zverev, and Alcaraz. Good luck to both men.

Women

You’d be crazy not to pick Iga Swiatek to win this tournament going away. After her domination of clay court season this year, it became obvious that there is no one else in her league on this surface. She sputtered out in Wimbledon, so she probably can’t wait to get back on the dirt.

It’s easy to see Jasmine Paolini having another good showing after her runner-up finishes at both Roland Garros and Wimbledon. Unfortunately, it’s also easy to see her falling early after the variety of overwhelming experiences she’s been going through.

Wimbledon champ, and 2021 French Open champ, Barbora Krejcikova, however, will be expected to reach at least the quarterfinals. She needs to pay off that Wimbledon victory, and now would be a terrific time to do it.

In general, the women’s draw is pretty straightforward: it’s Iga against the field.

Doubles Competitions

The doubles draws always deliver some fun pairings at the Olympics, and this year is no different:

Men’s Doubles

Petros Tsitsipas / Stefanos Tsitsipas (Greece)

Taylor Fritz / Tommy Paul (USA)

Felix Auger-Aliassime / Milos Raonic (Canada)

Francisco Cerundulo / Tomas Martin Etcheverry (Argentina)

Daniel Evans / Andy Murray (Great Britain)

Carlos Alcraz / Rafael Nadal (Spain)

Luciano Darderi / Lorenzo Musetti (Italy)

Women’s Doubles

Coco Gauff / Jessica Pegula (USA)

Sara Errani / Jasmine Paolini (Italy)

Caroline Garcia / Diane Parry (France)

Angelique Kerber / Laura Siegemund (Germany)

Olivia Gadecki / Ajla Tomlanovic (Australia)

Barbora Krejcikova / Katerina Siniakova (Czech Republic)

Mixed Doubles

Alexander Zverev / Laura Siegemund (Germany)

Taylor Fritz / Coco Gauff (USA)

Alexander Bublik / Elena Rybakina (Kazakhstan)

Daniil Medvedev / Mirra Andreeva (Individual Neutral Athletes)

Stefanos Tsitsipas / Maria Sakkari (Greece)

Zhizhen Zhang / Qinwen Zheng (China)

Retirements

Andy Murray

After his Wimbledon farewell, only one tournament remains in Andy Murray’s storied career. The Olympics will be his final competition as a professional tennis player.

The three-time major winner and two-time Olympic gold medalist withdrew from the singles competition at the last minute, and will only compete in doubles with partner Dan Evans. One last chance to watch the legend.

Angelique Kerber

In a surprise move on the eve of the opening ceremony, Angie Kerber announced she will retire after this year’s Olympics. A surefire Hall of Famer, Kerber won three majors (Australia ’16, U.S. Open ’16, and Wimbledon ’18) and an Olympic silver medal in Rio 2016.

The German lefty is as likable as they come and will be missed. It’s time for her to focus exclusively on motherhood. Cheer her on in Paris.

Gratuitous Carlos Alcaraz Highlight