Alcaraz and Djokovic voice concerns over alternate entries: "I don’t think it’s a good image for the sport"

Carlos Alcaraz and Novak Djokovic expressed their disagreement with the Olympic rule that allows only players from the draw to enter as alternates. Both players debuted on Saturday with victories, though Djokovic's opponent, Mathew Ebden, was particularly noteworthy as he had not competed in singles for two years.

After some last-minute withdrawals, including Jannik Sinner, Holger Rune, and Hubert Hurkacz, there were spots to be filled in the main draw. The Olympic Games rules stipulate that in cases of withdrawal, the players are replaced by the next ones already on the entry list.

This was the case for Ebden, a 36-year-old Australian doubles specialist who doesn't even have a singles ranking but is currently world No. 3 in doubles. Ebden hadn't played a singles match in the last two years but found himself with the last-minute opportunity to face the 24-time Grand Slam champion on Philippe Chatrier.

The result was a decisive 6-0, 6-1 win for the Serbian in less than an hour. The current world No. 2 commented that it wasn't a good decision for someone like Ebden to take a spot in the singles main draw: “I really don’t understand the rules. They’re really not logical for me,” he said.

“I don’t think it’s a good image for the sport, to be honest. There were a lot of singles players that have plenty of time, that were alternates, that could have been called to come. This part I don’t get,” the 3-time Roland Garros champion added.

Alcaraz, the second favorite in the draw after Djokovic, was asked his opinion on the strange situation: “It’s a difficult rule, I guess. Honestly, there are a lot of players who deserve to be here and playing here in the Olympic Games. I think it should be different, because the next singles player (in the rankings) deserves to be here if someone withdraws from the tournament.”

Although Ebden wasn't the first player asked to replace Rune (withdrew due to a wrist injury), he was the first to accept the invitation despite not having practiced singles in the last two years. He only played a practice tie-break on Friday before challenging Djokovic.