July 31, (THEWILL) – Rafael Nadal and Carlos Alcaraz’s bid for Olympic doubles gold came to a halt on Wednesday. The Spanish duo, nicknamed “Nadalcaraz”, lost their quarter-final match against American pair Rajeev Ram and Austin Krajicek at Roland Garros.
The match, played on Court Philippe Chatrier, saw the Americans triumph 6-2 6-4. Despite fervent support from a packed stadium, Nadal and Alcaraz struggled to find their rhythm against the well-coordinated fourth seeds. Ram’s expert net play proved particularly effective throughout the contest.
The Spanish team had previously ridden waves of crowd enthusiasm to victory, but this time fell short. Alcaraz, who had earlier reached the singles quarter-finals, appeared fatigued. His consecutive double faults in the first set gave the Americans a significant advantage.
The match concluded dramatically, with Krajicek serving through breakpoints amidst crowd uproar. An ace on match point, confirmed by the umpire, sealed the Americans’ victory. The result was met with stunned silence from the pro-Spanish audience.
Nadal, who began the 2024 Paris Games by carrying the Olympic flame, leaves without adding to his two previous gold medals. At 38, this may have been his final appearance on the Parisian clay where he won 14 French Open titles. Fans captured photos of the Spanish legend one last time as he left the court.
Jude Obafemi is a versatile senior Correspondent at THEWILL Newspapers, excelling in sourcing, researching, and delivering sports news stories for both print and digital publications.
