Rafael Nadal is convinced that countryman and World No. 3 Carlos Alcaraz is "predestined" to be one of the best tennis players in history.
Alcaraz is currently preparing to play on his Olympics debut in Paris this weekend and has been one of the most sought-after athletes by fans and players at the Olympic Village.
The 21-year-old has taken the tennis world by storm since his ATP debut in Rio four years ago. Alcaraz has won four Grand Slams already, becoming one of the quickest players in ATP history to reach this tally after he lifted the Wimbledon men's title in mid-July.
On his debut at the Paris Olympics, he will play in singles and doubles, and the tennis events are scheduled to take place at Stade Roland Garros. Alcaraz will fulfill one of his personal goals of joining forces with Nadal in the men's doubles tournament.
By contrast, Nadal is a veteran of professional tennis, having made his pro debut in 2001, and has enjoyed a fruitful career at the top level. He is a former World No. 1 and winner of 22 Grand Slams (the second-most by a male player).
14 of Nadal's 22 majors have been won at the French Open—a tournament record—cementing himself as the indisputable king of the surface. He will be participating in his fourth Olympics and is a two-time Gold Medalist, winning the Beijing Olympics (singles) and the Rio Olympics (men's doubles).
Before the start of the 2024 tournament, Nadal spoke to Spanish radio station Onda Cero, where he reserved special praise for Alcaraz, who will partner him in doubles for the first time in a match.
"I think he [Carlos Alcaraz] is a player predestined to be one of the best in history, that is what I feel when I see him play. Then in life you never know what can happen."
It's not the first time that Nadal has made such a bold prediction. Before they met at the 2022 Madrid Open, the 38-year-old legend opined that Alcaraz "has everything" to become a mega star in tennis and had the potential to win "a lot of Grand Slams".
So far, it's been a dream start to life on the ATP Tour for the Murcia native, who is the only man born after the 1990s to win multiple majors. Moreover, Alcaraz has already beaten the likes of Novak Djokovic, Jannik Sinner, Daniil Medvedev, and Nadal in high-stakes matches.
Nadal and Alcaraz will be rivals and teammates in Paris for the Olympics, and the 22-time Grand Slam champion divulged their on-court chemistry after being spotted putting in the hard yards in training throughout the week preparing for their doubles match.
"It is not just about getting along, but about playing well in doubles. He has not played for a long time and I have not played for two days last week, we have to automate the movements."
"We started slower, we have to understand where to return, where to choose the right shot because the spaces are smaller. We are feeling better every time. We will not have that from the start, but we are very excited and totally focused."
Alcaraz will play in singles on the opening day on Saturday against Hady Habib of Lebanon. He is also scheduled to play doubles that same day with Nadal against the Argentinian duo of Andres Molteni and Maximo Gonzalez.
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