Rafael Nadal advanced to the second round of the doubles with fellow Spaniard Carlos Alcaraz, seemingly ending any hope of a much-awaited Olympic matchup with Novak Djokovic.
Due to a thigh injury he sustained during practicing at Roland Garros, the site of 14 of his 22 Grand Slam victories, the 38-year-old virtually ruled himself out of the singles competition.
With Djokovic waiting in the wings, Nadal is still scheduled to take against Marton Fucsovics of Hungary on Sunday.
The second-ranked player in the world from Serbia fulfilled his obligation earlier on Saturday by crushing Matthew Ebden of Australia in straight sets.
“I’m not sure what will happen, or if I will play tomorrow,” said Rafael Nadal, the 2008 gold medallist in singles and the eight-time Rio doubles champion.
“Let’s see, I’ll consult with my people and decide as wisely as I can to maximize my chances of returning home with a medal.”
Nadal, who has struggled with injuries throughout his career, is participating in just seven tournaments this year. His current singles ranking is a pitiful 161.
Playing together for the first time, Nadal and Alcaraz defeated Maximo Gonzalez and Andres Molteni of Argentina 7-6 (7/4), 6-4 in their doubles opening round on Saturday.
Alcaraz had earlier had a successful start to his Olympic career, defeating world number 275 Hady Habib of Lebanon in just 70 minutes, 6-3, 6-1.
Third-ranked Alcaraz, who won the French Open on the same court last month, said of the event: “It was an incredible experience; the energy of the crowd was crazy.”
Under the cover of Court Philippe Chatrier, Djokovic defeated Australia’s Matthew Ebden 6-0, 6-1 in just 53 minutes as he sought an Olympic gold medal to add to his already impressive 24 Grand Slams.
Djokovic declared that he had been anticipating the chance to play Nadal once more.
The Serb stated, “If we play each other, it might be our final meeting on the big stage.”
The 36-year-old Ebden, who entered the competition solely as an alternative following many injury withdrawals, was hardly able to challenge Djokovic.