Spain’s Rafael Nadal and Carlos Alcaraz won their first-round men’s doubles clash against Argentina’s Maximo Gonzalez and Andres Molteni at the 2024 Paris Olympics. This was the first time the Spanish pair teamed up and Court Philippe-Chatrier was witness to multiple iconic moments.
Nadal and Alcaraz were up against sixth seed Gonzalez and Molteni on Saturday, July 27. The Spanish pair had not completed much practice together and thus seemed to be working towards understanding each other’s play early in the match. However, the Spaniards improved their coordination as the game progressed and kept racking up points.
Nadal and Alcaraz won the match 7-6(4), 6-4 to advance to the next round. Their win was witnessed by several members of their respective families as Nadal’s mother, his wife, and their son were in attendance along with Alcaraz’s father and brother. Let’s take a look at some of the best moments from their first-round win.
#1 Rafael Nadal and Carlos Alcaraz enter Court Philippe-Chatrier
Nadal and Alcaraz are both former World No. 1s in singles. 38-year-old Nadal has won the French Open 14 times while 21-year-old Alcaraz bagged his first Roland Garros title just over a month ago.
Their presence on Court Philippe-Chatrier is immense and the weight of the occasion could be felt in the crowd as they entered the court. The pair looked intimidating as they prepared for battle.
#2 Rafael Nadal and Carlos Alcaraz celebrating in sync
The pair of Rafael Nadal and Carlos Alcaraz had a lot of cause to cheer and celebrate during the match. They pulled off some fantastic net plays and cross-court shots, which are specialized aspects of the doubles event.
As individuals who have never played together, their relationship during the match grew so well that they were even celebrating in sync. Here are some images of the pair celebrating similarly:
#3 Carlos Alcaraz imitating Rafael Nadal’s iconic jump before play begins
Rafael Nadal is one of the most followed tennis stars in the world. His moments on court are closely watched by fans; one of his most iconic movements is the standing high-knee jump he does on the court.
Carlos Alcaraz, who idolizes the 38-year-old, was spotted imitating the knees-to-chest hop right beside the legend himself.
#4 Rafael Nadal and Carlos Alcaraz share a laugh following the latter’s decisive thinking
During the first set, at 4-4, 15-30, Alcaraz was faced with a decision to play the shot or leave it as it might go long. The reigning Wimbledon champion almost played the shot but left it at the last moment. It was the correct decision as the ball hit by their Argentine opponent was called out.
After the point was completed, the Spanish pair met at the end of the court and shared a laugh about what could have been a mistake from Alcaraz if he played it.
#5 Rafael Nadal and Carlos Alcaraz’s reaction to winning their first men’s doubles match at the 2024 Paris Olympics
After winning the first set, Spain faced an uphill battle as they went 0-3 down in the second. Nadal and Alcaraz were, however, seemingly unfazed as they brought the score back to parity at 4-4 and broke again before serving for the win.
As soon as Alcaraz played the winning shot, there was an outpouring of emotion as the crowd on Court Philippe-Chatrier cheered on their beloved Spanish pair. The duo hugged and celebrated, and they move on to face the winner of the match between Dutchmen Tallon Griekspoor and Wesley Koolhof and Hungarians Marton Fucsovics and Fabian Marozsan.