Rafael Nadal suffers thigh injury, puts Paris Olympics 2024 participation in doubt

Spain’s Rafael Nadal has suffered a thigh injury in the lead up to the 2024 Paris Olympics and could be a doubtful starter, according to his coach Carlos Moya.

Nadal, who has been battling injuries for a few years now, will play in both singles and doubles. His partnership with Carlos Alcaraz is the most talked point with both players being clay court specialists.

The tennis competition at the Paris Olympics 2024 will be played at Roland Garros, the home of the French Open.

Nadal has won the French Open a staggering 14 times, the most by any player, and Alcaraz is the rising star in clay court after having won his first French Open title in 2024.

Speaking on Spanish radio, Moya said Nadal was under some discomfort and looked out of place and did not train on Thursday. “He had some discomfort on Wednesday morning. In the afternoon, he was more limited and before it got worse he decided to stop. He did not train on Thursday, which was the most responsible thing to do. It is about not forcing it at the moment and seeing if he recovers well. We will see what condition he’s in on Friday and Saturday,” Moya said.

Moya, a former Spanish tennis player, added that there is no clarity on Nadal’s participation yet. “I can’t guarantee anything, neither that he won’t play or he will play. At the moment he needs to rest, undergo treatment. He is obviously very excited to play in the Olympics. It has been something marked on his calendar for years,” he explained.

Moya added that Nadal was excited to play doubles alongside Alcaraz, who is tipped to take the crown of ‘King of Clay’ from Nadal. “He is a born competitor and wants to play singles and doubles. He’s very excited about the doubles with Alcaraz. It will be the first time they have played together and it will be something historic for Spanish tennis,” he added.

Nadal will face Marton Fucscovics of Hungary in the first round in men’s singles and will mostly play Novak Djokovic in the second round.

Nadal and Alcaraz are scheduled to play Andres Molteni and Maximo Gonzalez of Argentina in the men’s doubles first round.

Nadal’s last title came at the 2022 French Open and he was ousted in the first round in this year’s tournament at Roland Garros.

He lost the Swedish Open final to Nuno Borges last week. It was Nadal’s first ATP Tour final since his 2022 French Open triumph.

Nadal won the gold medal at the Olympics twice – in singles at Beijing Olympics 2008 and in doubles at Rio de Janeiro Olympics 2016, partnering Marc Lopez.