Djokovic overcomes Nadal challenge; Swiatek advances smoothly

Serbia’s top-seeded Novak Djokovic navigated a momentary lapse in the second set to defeat 14-time French Open champion Rafael Nadal 6-1 6-4 at the Paris Olympics on Monday, advancing to the third round.

In contrast, world number one Iga Swiatek of Poland had an easier day, dominating France’s Diane Parry 6-1 6-1 to also secure her spot in the third round.

While Djokovic continues his quest for an Olympic gold medal, Spain’s Nadal, who has two Olympic golds, now only has the doubles competition remaining. He will team up with Carlos Alcaraz for that event.

Djokovic initially led 6-1 4-0 before Nadal mounted a comeback to level the set at 4-4. Djokovic praised the match, stating, “I was just very proud to be part of this match and wanted to execute the game plan as best I could. It was almost a perfect match until things got complicated and I hesitated a bit.”

Carlos Alcaraz also advanced in singles with a 6-1 7-6 win over Dutch player Tallon Griekspoor. Eighth-seed Stefanos Tsitsipas moved forward with a 6-1 6-2 win against Britain’s Daniel Evans. Meanwhile, sixth seed Casper Ruud of Norway had a tougher time in his three-set win over Italy’s Andrea Vavassori.

In the women’s draw, alongside Swiatek, Czech Barbora Krejcikova, the new Wimbledon champion, and American Coco Gauff also advanced with straight-sets victories.

The Djokovic-Nadal clash drew significant attention, with many hoping for a final Parisian flourish from Nadal despite his advancing age and recent injuries. Nadal acknowledged his struggle, saying, “Playing against Novak without creating damage and without the legs of 20 years ago is almost impossible.”

At 37, Djokovic, with 24 Grand Slam singles titles to Nadal’s 22, demonstrated superior form, delivering a strong performance that saw him dominate the first set and a half. Nadal, burdened by a thigh injury and displaying inconsistency, could not sustain his challenge. Though Nadal rallied briefly, Djokovic sealed his victory with an ace on his first match point.