by Medal table | Olympic Games Calendar | Olympic News
It was a busy day on the courts of Roland Garros, highlighted by former, future and current stars of world tennis.
First up, Spain’s Carlos Alcaraz, competing in his first Olympic Games, advanced to the semi-finals after beating American Tommy Paul 6-3, 7-6(7) in a scintillating match in which both players produced stunning comebacks.
Alcaraz and Paul had met only five times before their Olympic match on Thursday, with Alcaraz holding the advantage with three wins. But there was a sense that something was brewing between the two. Alcaraz won the first set 6-3 in 39 minutes, but Paul came alive in the second set. He managed to take a 3-0 lead over Alcaraz, a rare feat for a player. Alcaraz scored his first point, but trailing 5-2, he was staring down a third set.
Then it was Alcaraz’s turn to come alive. He stopped Paul in his tracks, holding the set at 5-3 and then 5-4. By the time Alcaraz managed to come back and level the set at 5-5, Paul’s momentum was a distant memory. But Paul had even more reserves. He won the next game without Alcaraz scoring a single point, which guaranteed him at least a tiebreak.
The tiebreak is exactly what happened next. And for a tiebreak, it was thrilling. Tied 3-3 after six points, Alcaraz won the next two, but Paul made another comeback to tie it 5-5. Alcaraz then had a match point at 6-5, but Paul Again Paul regained the lead 7-6 and could have won the set with the next point, but Alcaraz managed to equalize again.
But it had to end. Alcaraz finally managed to score two points in a row to win the tiebreak 9-7, as well as the set and the match. He has reached the semifinals and is assured of playing for a medal (but not winning one). He will face either Casper Ruud of Norway or Felix Auger-Aliassime of Canada in the semifinals. Ruud and Auger-Aliassime will face each other later on Thursday.
Novak Djokovic advances
Later Thursday, Novak Djokovic beat Stefanos Tsitsipas in three sets to advance to the semifinals against Lorenzo Musetti on Friday. He has been battling knee problems, however, which he required surgery on after being forced to withdraw from the French Open in early June.
“I am concerned about the condition of the knee,” Djokovic said. “I can’t give you exact information because I don’t have it. I have to go and examine the knee now with my physio and with the tournament medical staff. And then we’ll see.”
The position of the United States
All tennis disciplines are in the running, which means we have a much clearer picture of the Americans’ chances of winning a medal. Paul was the last American left in the men’s or women’s singles, so no medal. Same for women’s doubles (Coco Gauff and Jessica Pegula lost) and mixed doubles (Gauff and Taylor Fritz lost).
But the U.S. team has better luck in men’s doubles. Paul and Fritz, longtime friends, beat Britain’s Andy Murray and Daniel Evans in the quarterfinals Thursday. And the understated duo of Austin Krajicek and Rajeev Ram, both doubles specialists (Ram is a six-time Grand Slam doubles champion), are in the final and are guaranteed a gold or silver medal.
The end of the road for Murray
Murray and Evans’ three-set loss to Paul and Fritz on Thursday marked the end of Murray’s career, with the 37-year-old having announced before the Paris Games that the 2024 Olympics would be his final tournament. Murray won men’s singles gold at the 2012 and 2016 Olympics.
“I don’t know exactly what the rest of my life is going to look like, but I’m going to continue to be interested in sport,” Murray said of his retirement ahead of the Games. “At first, I want to be home with my family. I want to spend a lot of time with my kids and my wife, so I won’t be on the road a lot, I know that.”
Naturally, Murray, who left court in tears on Thursday night, injected a little British humour into the situation on X.
Anyway, I never liked tennis.
— Andy Murray (@andy_murray) August 1, 2024
