Pablo Carreno Busta, Garbine Muguruza to Lead Spain’s Challenge at the Tokyo Olympics 2020

Despite their most-loved superstar and biggest medal hope withdrawing from the Tokyo Olympics 2020, Spain will send a strong tennis contingent to the Japanese capital.

While an official confirmation is still awaited, it is understood that Spain has zeroed in on its preferred bunch for the Tokyo Games, which will be held from July 23 to August 6.

Carla Suarez Navarro is also part of the Spain squad for Tokyo Olympics 2020

Current World No.13 Pablo Carreno Busta will lead the country’s challenge in the men’s field, and two-time Grand Slam champion Garbine Muguruza will shoulder expectations in the women’s draw.

As for the other members of the strong Tokyo contingent, Alejandro Davidovich Fokina, Pablo Andujar and Roberto Carballes Baena will accompany Busta on the men’s side, while Paula Badosa, Sara Sorribes Tormo and the fit-again Carla Suarez Navarro will partner Muguruza on the women’s side.

Navarro, who retired from tennis last year to fight a grim battle against cancer, came out with a welcoming piece of news this year that she had made a full recovery. In double delight for her fans and well-wishers, she also announced her return to the sport. She entered the women’s draw at this year’s French Open but lost her tournament opener to American Sloane Stephens in a closely fought three-setter.

Currently ranked 70th in singles, Andujar had two of his biggest career scalps this season in the form of Roger Federer at the Gonet Geneva Open and reigning US Open champion Dominic Thiem at Roland-Garros.

Fokina, the current World No. 35, also had a strong run on clay this year, finishing last-16 in Rome and reaching the quarter-finals at French Open, his first appearance in the last-eight of a Grand Slam.

Ranked lowest in the men’s contingent at 100, Baena reached the quarter-finals of the Belgrade 2 clay-court event before an injury cut short a promising campaign.

Pablo Carreno Busta will carry Spain’s hopes in the men’s draw at Tokyo Olympics 2020

Busta, who currently sits 13th in singles, had a rather underwhelming clay season by his standards, with a semi-final finish at Barcelona and a fourth-round loss to Stefanos Tsitsipas at the French Open being his most notable performances.

On the women’s side, Badosa had a dream run on clay, reaching the semifinals in Madrid, lifting the Serbia Open title, and reaching the quarters at Roland-Garros.

Sorribes Tormo beat Canadian star Eugenie Bouchard to lift her maiden Tour title at Guadalajara and also reached the semifinals at Monterrey and quarters at Miami.

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After a rousing start with an appearance in the Qatar final and lifting the title in Doha, injury struggles have slowed Muguruza’s progress this season.

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Apart from Nadal, the likes of 10th-ranked Roberto Bautista Agut, Albert Ramos (40), Jaume Munar (69), the hugely promising Carlos Alcaraz (75) and Feliciano Lopez (90) had ruled themselves out of contention for the squad for Tokyo Olympics 2020.