The sigh of relief is finally here! The Paris Olympics are in full swing, and tennis enthusiasts have been eagerly waiting to see the ‘King of Clay’ dominate the courts yet again. However, all did not seem to be well in Rafael Nadal‘s camp initially. The Spaniard, alongside his sensational partner Carlos Alcaraz, won his first match in the doubles category, igniting excitement and hope. But rumors swirled about Nadal potentially skipping the singles matches due to physical barriers, leaving fans anxious and speculating. But fate seems to be favorable!

The worst has not happened at the Games and there is nothing that can stop Nadal from giving his cent percent in the final Olympics of his career. The tennis legend has brought all rumors to an end as he has decided to play against Márton Fucsovics in the first round, with the hope of continuing his winning momentum. This comes just a day after Nadal raised speculations about his participation in the singles category. After winning the first-round doubles match, Nadal opened up about his uncertainty for the singles. 

When quizzed if he would play again the next day, he said, “At 2:00 p.m. I’m playing? I don’t understand, it’s 10:00 p.m. at night right now. It is outrageous to me…” Later, it was reported that Rafa would huddle up his team and take a decision only on Sunday about his participation, which finally gave relief to his fans. And quitting the tournament could not have been easy for Nadal, either.

Nadal is playing the final Olympics of his career and is aspiring to win big. After his first-round defeat at the French Open, Nadal expressed his desire to prioritize the Paris Olympics and return in complete form. Besides, his latest run at the Bastad, where he played an ATP finals after two years, will give him more confidence to put up his all-round effort. 

The 38-year-old played alongside Alcaraz and defeated the doubles specialist Argentine pair Maximo Gonzalez and Andres Molteni in straight sets, 7-6(4), 6-4. In doing so, the pair was seen as unbeatable. And despite the struggles of playing matches on back-to-back days, Nadal has not surrendered. If the Spaniard can win his opening singles match as well, he will be facing Novak Djokovic in the second round for yet another clash of Titans. But for Nadal, the main aspiration from the Olympics is to leave with a ‘peace of mind.’

Will playing singles give the ‘peace of mind’ to Nadal?

The win-or-lose aspect of the match will be clarified only after it is over. But it is certain that the decision to play in the singles will indeed provide Rafa with the peace of mind that he desires to attain before leaving the Paris Olympics. In a recent interaction, Rafael Nadal opened up about his aspirations for the tournament.

“We’ll be making an effort to ensure we can leave with the peace of mind that we have tried to go as far as possible. I hope that last week, when I spent a lot of time on court, helps me physically to raise the level so that this works.” Furthermore, he also talked about what makes this year the most important for him,

“It’s a great opportunity to be at the Games, the largest sporting event in the world. I appreciate being here. This will be my last. I’ve missed two (London 2012 and Tokyo 2020) and it hurt me more than missing a Grand Slam,” While it remains to be seen if Nadal can once again dominate the clay courts, the decision has surely made the fans exhilarated, hasn’t it?.