The tennis community has regained hope in Rafael Nadal‘s Paris Olympics campaign. After a troubled season full of multiple setbacks, the Spaniard made a fresh appearance alongside the French Open champion Carlos Alcaraz. While his opening doubles match was a hit, dark clouds seem to have covered his singles participation. Let’s unpack the circumstances of Nadal’s decision to possibly forego the singles event.

Nadal’s absence from training on Thursday fueled speculation about his potential withdrawal. However, Rafa, who is eager to win a gold medal and initially planned to compete in both the singles and doubles, is currently prioritizing the doubles event with Alcaraz.

On Saturday, the duo of Nadal and Alcaraz made a remarkable start at the Games, taking down Argentina’s Maximo Gonzalez and Andres Molteni with a score of 7-6 (4), 6-4 on Court Philippe Chatrier. Therefore, currently being referred to as “Nadalcaraz” among the audience. Soon after the match, the crowd gave them a standing ovation, celebrating their dynamic performance.

Besides the fans, Nadal’s coach, Carlos Moyá, highlighted the excitement surrounding the duo.“You see Rafa with his experience and charisma. And then you see Carlos, kind of like Rafa was aged 20 or 21, very expressive and effusive … hopefully they can keep going because it’s a partnership that tennis fans can fall in love with,” he said. While this is obviously an update to celebrate, it also has a second side attached to it.

Besides this, Nadal also expressed his frustration over the packed Olympic schedule. He faces the challenge of competing in both singles and doubles, which eventually leaves little time for rest. Soon after the doubles win, he lashed out at the authorities for scheduling his first singles match too soon:

Nadal’s dissatisfaction with the schedule raised doubts about his will to enter his singles campaign. “Tomorrow, I don’t know what’s going to happen. I don’t know if I’m going to play or not,” he told the media. “Sometimes less is more”, further added Nadal, a two-time gold medallist (2008 Beijing singles, 2016 Rio doubles).

Although these two reasons are strong enough to drop hints of his withdrawal from the singles participation, there is one more rationale to it.

Injury scare covers Nadal’s singles participation with dark clouds

Along with the psychological reason that justifies a change in Nadal’s mind, there’s a technical aspect to the situation as well. Nadal, who had suffered a thigh injury during practice, competed the entire one-hour, 47-minute doubles match on Saturday with his upper right leg wrapped. However, the injury appeared to have no impact on his movement. This unease could possibly act as a hindrance to his singles entry.

While everyone in the tennis community is already aware of the adverse situations that Rafa has gone through because of multiple injuries, his physical state adds a layer of insecurity in the minds of the fans. However, the Spaniard still tried to keep his fans reassured.“Nothing is linear in this life. There are moments and states which normally go hand in hand with physical states. I try to enjoy and live what I feel at each moment,” he said.

If Nadal cannot compete in singles, he may follow in the footsteps of fellow tennis legend Andy Murray, who has opted to focus solely on the doubles event with Dan Evans. With a first-round match against Fucsovics looming on Sunday, Nadal’s status for the singles event hangs in the balance. Will he show up at the match? Drop your thoughts in the comments section below.