After his stupendous win over the 23-time Grand Slam champion Novak Djokovic in the Wimbledon Championships, world no. 1 Carlos Alcaraz has become the talk of the town. Most people thought that Djokovic was the favorite, especially after him winning the first set in such a commanding fashion. But that wasn’t the case. Alcaraz proved to be a hard nut to crack in the coming sets for Djokovic, and he ultimately won the match.
Now that he has won the Wimbledon Championships, Alcaraz has expressed another desire of his heart. He has said that he wants to play doubles with the legendary fellow Spaniard Rafael Nadal before the latter retires. Currently, Nadal is absent from the tour because of a hip injury that has caused him to miss the remainder of the season this year after the Australian Open.
Alcaraz’s Olympic dream with Nadal
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Alcaraz has made it clear that he wishes to play the doubles event in Paris at the next Olympics with fellow Spaniard and idol, Nadal. Nadal is a very good doubles player as well, who has already won the gold medal in the doubles category for Spain with Marc Lopez. The doubles events will happen at the Roland Garros Stadium, where Nadal has won a staggering 14 French Open titles. Thus, he knows the court better than anybody.
Alcaraz said to El Partidazo de Cope , ” It would be a dream to live the experience of playing doubles with your idol,” insisted Alcaraz, who expressed a similar view earlier this year when he said: “Let’s see how he’s doing and how he’s going, you know, in this year. Hopefully, he’s going great but for me, it could be a dream to play doubles with him.”
Definitely, the combination of the lethal Nadal and the world no.1 Alcaraz will be a very tough team for anyone to beat. So if they team up together, the tennis fans are in for a treat for sure. Alcaraz had even more positive things to say about Nadal, like how he encouraged him prior to the summit clash.
Nadal’s message for Alcaraz before the final
Before the finals of the Wimbledon Championships, Nadal sent Alcaraz a message wishing him luck. Alcaraz said that when one’s idol sends a message, wishing strength and luck are something to admire. Nadal also tweeted in appreciation of Alcaraz after he came through Djokovic in the thrilling 5-setter.
Enhorabuena @carlosalcaraz . Nos has dado una alegría inmensa hoy y seguro que nuestro pionero en el tenis español, Manolo Santana, también ha estado animando allá dónde esté como de Wimbledon al que hoy te has unido.
Un abrazo muy fuerte y a disfrutar del momento ¡¡¡Campeón!!!… pic.twitter.com/y0j2GowX3O— Rafa Nadal (@RafaelNadal) July 16, 2023
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The translation reads, “Congratulations @carlosalcaraz. You have given us immense joy today and I am sure that our pioneer in Spanish tennis, Manolo Santana, has also been cheering wherever he is, such as Wimbledon whom you have joined today. A very strong hug and enjoy the moment, Champion!!!”
To receive such high praise from Nadal would serve as the ideal motivation for Alcaraz to succeed in his upcoming endeavors. Most of the tennis universe is waiting fervently for the return of Nadal, who has been sidelined due to injuries. And Alcaraz will hope for the same as well.
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Journalists and the Paparazzi are now chasing Alcaraz. He has become a huge sporting icon with this one win. He was already a grand slam champion, but winning Wimbledon is quite a different thing altogether. And winning the Olympic gold medal next year in the doubles event with the illustrious Nadal as his partner would be another feather in his cap.
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