TENNIS
The reason why Rafa Nadal isn’t playing at Wimbledon despite not being injured
The Spaniard last appeared at Roland Garros, one of four events he has played in this year. He was expected to skip Wimbledon, which he won in 2008 and 2010.
For the second year running, and much to the dismay of his fans over in England, Rafa Nadal will not be taking part at this year’s Wimbledon - the oldest tennis tournament in the world and one of the most prestigious.
The 38-year-old has been dealing with fitness issues for some time and has appeared at just four events this year: the Madrid and Barcelona Opens and more recently, Roland Garros along with an exhibition match against compatriot Carlos Alcaraz in Las Vegas back in March.
Rafa Nadal choosing his priorities in 2024
Once again, Nadal has decided not to take part at Wimbledon - even though he is not injured and has no fitness concerns. Physically, Rafa is fine and the reason why he won’t be seen at the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club this year is merely a question of managing his priorities. Now in the twilight of his playing career, Nadal can’t play in every competition in the 2024 calendar which is why he is focusing on one of his main objectives - the Paris Olympic Games, which run from 26 July to 11 August.
Attending the Olympics for one last time is what matters most to the Spaniard right now. He won gold at the 2008 games in the men’s singles event and repeated the feat with another gold medal in the doubles with Marc López at Rio 2016.
As he himself explained, it’s not a good idea to make the transition from playing on grass to clay in such a short space of time - which he would have had to have done had he put himself down for Wimbledon, then travel to Paris. Since suffering a muscle injury that forced him to withdraw from the Australian Open in January, Rafa has limited himself to playing exclusively on clay. Competing on grass would only increase the chance of him suffering a relapse of his injury. And if that could put his presence at the Games in jeopardy then better to give it a miss.
Nadal and Alcaraz, a formidable team at the Paris Games
Nadal will be one of seven players representing Spain at the 2024 Olympics in the men’s singles event, along with Carlos Alcaraz, Pablo Carreño Busta, Alejandro Davidovich Fokina, Pedro Martínez, Jaume Munar and Roberto Carballés Baena.
Rafael Nadal and Carlos Alcaraz will also join forces in the men’s doubles as team captain David Ferrer confirmed: “As you all know, one of the doubles teams will be formed by Carlos Alcaraz and Rafael Nadal. The second team is yet to be decided, it’s not 100 per cent certain. There is a clear idea, but we’re going to wait a little to decide it. If nothing happens to prevent it, Rafa and Carlos will be playing together in Paris.”
The tennis event at the 2024 Paris Olympic Games will take place from Saturday 27 July to Sunday 4 August on the clay courts at Roland-Garros.