Rafael Nadal skipping Wimbledon to pursue third Olympic gold

Rafael Nadal is set to miss Wimbledon to prepare for the Olympic Games, where he will team up with Carlos Alcaraz in a dream doubles partnership.

The expected news was confirmed by Spain's Olympic team captain, David Ferrer, with Nadal having said last month that it would not be good for his body to switch surfaces from clay to grass.

With Nadal expected to retire at some point this year, it appears his final match at Wimbledon will be a quarter-final win over Taylor Fritz in 2022, following which he withdrew from the tournament because of an abdominal injury.

Alcaraz, who will make his Olympic debut, said last summer it would be a dream to play with Nadal in what is likely to be one of the final events of his career.

The 38-year-old made the French Open and Olympics his priorities after returning from a year out with hip problems.

He lost in the first round of the singles at Roland Garros last month to eventual finalist Alexander Zverev but will have another chance on the Parisian clay, with the Olympic tennis being held at the same venue.

As well as winning the French Open 14 times, Nadal also has two Olympic gold medals to his name, in singles in Beijing in 2008 and in doubles with Marc Lopez in Rio eight years ago.

The pair have never played together in a match before, while Alcaraz is very inexperienced in doubles, but they are sure to be one of the biggest draws of the event.

Alcaraz will go into the singles tournament as arguably the favourite for gold having just won his third grand slam title at Roland Garros.

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