Rafael Nadal and Carlos Alcaraz have been told how they can apply to compete in next year’s Olympics as they both fail to meet the usual criteria to represent their country. Both men have already discussed the prospect of playing doubles together at the Paris 2024 Games. But they no longer have a chance to become eligible for the Olympics given Spain’s Davis Cup calendar, meaning they can send a letter to the International Tennis Federation explaining why they have failed to meet the requirements.
In order for a player to compete at the Olympics, they must be part of their country’s Davis Cup team on at least two separate occasions in the Olympic Cycle and – for the Paris Games – one of these must come in 2023 or 2024. In Nadal’s case, the 37-year-old has not played in the Davis Cup since Spain won it in 2019.
Meanwhile, Alcaraz represented his country on one occasion in 2022 and did not join the team at the Davis Cup this year. Spain has since received a wildcard to the Davis Cup group stage in September 2024, meaning the nation has no more ties to contest until after the Olympics. It means that neither man can join their Davis Cup team in time to be eligible to compete in Paris 2024.
However, according to Marca, they will be able to plead their respective cases in a letter to the ITF, sent via the Spanish Tennis Federation. In Alcaraz’s case, the world No 2 can argue that – with Spain’s group stage wildcard – he has lost his chance to be part of the Davis Cup team in 2024. The ITF also takes into consideration when a player is a “newcomer” to the team tournaments and the 20-year-old’s ranking has also only been high enough for him to compete in recent years.
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As for Nadal, the 22-time Grand Slam champion has dealt with multiple injury issues since the last Olympics. He missed the Tokyo 2020 games – which were delayed by a year – due to a foot injury and shut down his 2021 season in August due to a foot injury. After a successful return to competition in 2022, he injured his abdomen at Wimbledon and only played four tournaments for the rest of the year.
Nadal then picked up a psoas injury in January of this year and hasn’t played since. He had previously earmarked the Davis Cup Finals as a potential comeback tournament but Spain failed to qualify for the Final 8 when they were knocked out in the group stage. The 37-year-old will be able to argue that injury has prevented him from playing a regular schedule and, therefore, from representing Spain in the Davis Cup.
The ITF requires a player to evidence any injury or illness “through authorised medical records, clearly identifying the period of absence from all competitive tennis.” They also take into consideration the strength of a nation and a player’s past dedication to playing for their country and, as a five-time Davis Cup champion, Nadal’s commitment will already be clear.
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It remains to be seen whether Nadal and Alcaraz will write letters to the ITF but they have already teased a potential men’s doubles partnership for next year’s Olympics. “It would be a dream. Not only to win a medal at singles or doubles, but just to live the experience of playing a doubles with your idol, would be a memory that I would keep with special affection.” Alcaraz previously cold Cope.
Nadal later outlined his hopes of playing one last Olympic Games and will be especially keen given that the tennis event is being held at Roland Garros, where he is a 14-time champion. “As for the Games, on a personal level, I would like to play them one more time. Everyone knows that I have always been a lover of Games,” he told AS before discussing the idea of playing with Alcaraz.
He added: “Regarding the fact of playing doubles with Carlos, I have not had the slightest conversation with him in that regard. But I would also like and it would be a good motivation, another incentive for me to be able to close my Olympic cycle playing with Carlos, with everything he is achieving, with the young people and with the great future he has ahead of him.”
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