This was the first Olympic doubles match that Rafael Nadal and Carlos Alcaraz won.
Olympic silver medallist Mardy Fish of the United States demanded that Rafael Nadal and Carlos Alcaraz be disqualified from the Paris 2024 Games following their victory in the first round of doubles competition.
In front of a crowded Court Philippe Chatrier, the Spanish pair played up to their billing as they defeated the Argentinians Maximo Gonzalez and Andres Molteni 7-6(4) 6-4.
At Roland Garros, their partnership clicked immediately away as they defeated the sixth seeds, despite Nadal’s right thigh being visible to be strapped. Fish voiced his opinion about their quality when the Spaniards immediately demonstrated that they would need some time to cease stealing the gold.
Fish made a joke about how “unfair” it was for two players with such skill to be able to compete together and establish the essential on-court rapport right away. Fish posted on X, saying, “I declare this team as not fair.” “Immediately disqualify them for being too good.”
Despite having played in as many as 116 matches and winning 14 titles on the Paris clay, Rafael Nadal has never participated in a doubles match at Roland Garros, despite having won an Olympic gold medal with Marc Lopez eight years prior.
Alcaraz is new to the format, and it showed early in their match when he lost serve to Wimbledon quarterfinalists Gonzalez and Molteni. Nevertheless, the Spanish talent was more than sufficient to win them the match.
The 21-year-old even acknowledged that, despite being the current Wimbledon and French Open champion, he felt anxious about taking the court with Rafael Nadal to play in the Olympics.
“The situation was impeding me, not Rafa personally,” he remarked. “At the end, playing alongside Rafael, witnessing the packed Philippe Chatrier Stadium, my first Olympics… I will admit that managing the nerves during that moment was challenging.
To be honest, that was a dream come true. I had always wanted to play in the Olympics, but it was much more thrilling to play alongside Rafa. I’m quite pleased with the level we performed and grateful that we have another round to play. Our performance level, in my opinion, is sufficient to inspire hope and carry on.
When Nadal learned that he would have to compete at 2 p.m. on Sunday after competing with Alcaraz on Saturday night and hearing that they were “too good” and should be disqualified, he was not pleased with the Olympic schedule.
The 38-year-old is scheduled to face Hungarian Marton Fucsovics in the singles competition, despite initial concerns that he would withdraw due to a thigh ailment.
If Rafael Nadal prevails in his first encounter, he will set up a thrilling second-round matchup with Novak Djokovic.