Rafael Nadal's game plan: From Hamburg European Open to the Olympics by way of Alcaraz doubles warm-up
ATP
Rafael Nadal has been earmarked as unlikely to play at Wimbledon which he admitted after he lost out to Alexander Zverev and he seems to have his next plans mapped out including with Carlos Alcaraz.
Nadal intends to play the Hamburg European Open in the week of 15-21 July which is one week before the Olympic Games takes place and will also likely include Novak Djokovic.
The out-going World No.1 according to L'Equipe last week sees Hamburg as a potential destination to restart its charge with the spot of the tournament shifting this year due to the Olympic Games. So no doubt it will attract a superb line-up of a lot of players then heading to Paris.
But that is not all, the plans of Carlos Alcaraz were mapped out in the article by Cope with a trip to Ibiza pending and then he will play Queen's and Wimbledon. Interestingly enough though, the doubles dream tandem at the Olympic Games seems to be very much on. Nadal is supposedly trying to coax Alcaraz into playing there in doubles. But this will depend on his condition post Olympic Games.
No doubt though if he does find a way of playing doubles, he will also join the singles field as further preparation for a dual gold medal bid. But it also shows likely that Nadal won't play Wimbledon and will put his practice into the clay for the next month to be ready for the Olympic Games.
"There is no Spanish city that Carlos Alcaraz has visited more than Ibiza. He loves it, he wants to celebrate Roland Garros there and spend a few days on vacation," said Ángel García who works for COPE and previously coauthored a book on Nadal in response to comments about Alcaraz's plans to go to Ibiza post Roland Garros translated from Spanish.
Garcia continued that he still plans to play Queens before the aforementioned plans set out by Nadal: "Then he will go to Queens like last year to prepare for Wimbledon and will try to defend the title. And from there Rafa wants to convince Carlos Alcaraz to play a tournament together on land and if not they will go directly to the Olympic Games, that the tennis tournament starts on July 27" .
Samuel GillEditor-in-Chief
Samuel Gill is the Chief Content Officer (CCO) of TennisUpToDate.com, a role he has held since 2020. He is responsible for editorial governance across the platform, including setting content standards, overseeing accuracy and consistency, and guiding long-term editorial strategy. Since joining, he has contributed more than 10,000 articles and editorial pieces across the TennisUpToDate network, playing a central role in the daily operation and development of the site.
Based in Leicester, Samuel has a broad background in tennis media. In his current role, he works closely with editors and writers to ensure coverage meets clear journalistic standards, with particular attention to verification, consistency, and timely updates when new information becomes available.
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