10 things to look for at the 2024 Olympics

                                             (Credit: Amber Searls/USA TODAY Sports) 

The 2024 Paris Olympics are under way, which means it is time for me to write my 10 things to look for at the Olympic tennis tournament, which will be held on the clay courts of Roland Garros. For a look at the draws, click here. Just make sure to go to the tab that says "Match Types" to switch back and forth between men's singles, women's singles, men's doubles, women's doubles, and mixed doubles. Alrighty, let's get into it! 

#1. Can Iga Świątek continue her dominance on the dirt? Iga Świątek comes in ranked #1 in the world with four French Open titles under her belt, most recently winning at Roland Garros earlier this summer. She is going to be the heavy favorite to win it all on the women's side given that clay is her best surface. It'll be interesting to see if she cruises to an Olympic gold medal or if anyone will offer some resistance and knock her out. 

#2. Can Rafael Nadal make any noise? This is almost certainly going to be the final Olympic games Rafael Nadal ever plays in and what better place for him to close out his Olympic career than in Paris? If he wins his first round match, up next will be Novak Djokovic. He has his work cut out for him, but at a minimum it would be fun to see the two of them face off one more time at this venue. Nadal is also playing doubles with Carlos Alcaraz, so how the two of them do in that draw will be something to watch for as well. 

#3. Can Coco Gauff bounce back quickly from a frustrating Wimbledon? Wimbledon did not go well for Coco Gauff as she went down in the 4th round. Fortunately for her, she loves the clay as she reached the French Open final in 2022. She knows how to play well at Roland Garros and coming in ranked #2 in the world, she has a great opportunity to go for the gold. It'll be fun to see if she can make that happen. 

#4. Can Novak Djokovic add a gold medal to his collection? Novak Djokovic is widely considered the greatest men's tennis player of all-time and yet he has never won an Olympic gold medal. He won the bronze at the 2008 Olympic games in Beijing but that's it. I'm sure he would like to add a gold medal to his collection and this might be his last opportunity to do it. He's at a point of his career where he's just playing for legacy and no longer worrying about the money or anything. I bet we'll see a very focused Djokovic during this tournament. 

#5. Can Jasmine Paolini break through to win a gold medal? Jasmine Paolini has had a phenomenal summer, reaching the finals at the French Open and Wimbledon. She is coming into the Olympics with a lot of momentum as the #5 player in the world and 4th seed in the tournament. If she could win a gold medal, that would be huge for her confidence and also make her feel like she didn't come away from this strong summer totally empty handed. 

#6. Can Alexander Zverev defend his title? Alexander Zverev comes in ranked #4 in the world and is the 3rd seed thanks to Jannik Sinner not playing. Zverev won the gold medal in 2020 and will be looking to defend his title. While he's never won a grand slam singles title, having that Olympic gold medal is nothing to sneeze at. If he could add a second Olympic gold medal to his collection, that would do a good deal to boost his legacy. 

#7. Can Barbora Krejcikova build on her Wimbledon title? Barbora Krejcikova comes in having just won Wimbledon and she won the French Open back in 2021, so she knows how to win at Roland Garros. If you want to talk about someone who could threaten Iga Świątek for the gold, Krejcikova might be the biggest threat out there. I'll be really interested to see how Krejcikova does. 

#8. Can Carlos Alcaraz make it a golden summer? Carlos Alcaraz won the French Open and Wimbledon this summer, so he's coming in with a lot of confidence. If he can win a gold medal, that would make this a summer for the ages. On top of that, as I mentioned earlier, he's also playing doubles with Rafael Nadal. If the two of them find a way to win the gold in the men's doubles, that would be really cool. 

#9. Can Caroline Wozniacki make some noise? Caroline Wozniacki is back playing tennis and most recently reached the 3rd round at Wimbledon. In women's tennis, anything can happen and with some matches now under her belt, I wouldn't rule out a run by Caroline Wozniacki. She reached the quarterfinals of the Olympics back in 2012 in London. If she could go even deeper this time and win a medal, she would be thrilled. 

#10. Can Gaël Monfils make the most of having home court advantage? Gaël Monfils is currently ranked 30th in the world and has the advantage of playing in his home country. The French crowd will go nuts if he makes a run. He's done pretty well at the Olympics, having reached the quarterfinals twice in 2008 (Beijing) and 2016 (Rio de Janeiro). If you want to talk about a possible dark horse, don't sleep on Monfils. 

Prediction: On the women's side, I'm going to pick Iga Świątek to win the gold. She's the best clay player in the world, making this event all teed up for her to go the distance. As for the men's side, I have to roll with Carlos Alcaraz. He won the French Open and Wimbledon this summer, so he's coming in hot. I think he knows the history that is on the line here and how he has a chance to really have a summer for the ages if he adds on a gold medal. It'll be fun to see if he pulls it off. 

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10 things to take away from 2024 Wimbledon

 

                                             (Credit: AELTC/Thomas Lovelock) 

2024 Wimbledon is over as Carlos Alcaraz and Barbora Krejcikova won the gentlemen's and ladies' singles titles respectively. Below are my ten things to take away from the two weeks that were in London. Enjoy!

Note: On CardinalSportsReport.com, I wrote about incoming Stanford freshman Alexander Razeghi winning the junior boys doubles title at Wimbledon. Read that here. 

#1. Carlos Alcaraz is going to win many grand slams: Carlos Alcaraz defeated Novak Djokovic 6-2, 6-2, 7-6 to win the gentlemen's singles title. It was the fourth grand slam title of Alcaraz's career and his second Wimbledon. He won the French Open earlier in the year, completing the "English Channel Double." That's really impressive. 

What makes it all the more impressive for Alcaraz isn't just the fact that he won it all, but it's the way he won it. From start to finish, he was the top player in the tournament and when going up against Novak Djokovic, who is widely considered to be the greatest tennis player of all-time, Alcaraz took him out in straight sets. Granted, Djokovic wasn't at full strength, but the fact that he was able to reach the final indicates he was still playing good tennis to get there. Given he's just 21 years old, Alcaraz has the potential to win a ton of grand slams and put himself into the conversation for greatest of all-time. 

#2. Barbora Krejcikova is now a two-time grand slam champion: Barbora Krejcikova defeated Jasmine Paolini 6-2, 2-6, 6-4 to win the ladies' singles title. Krejcikova is now ranked #10 in the world and now has two grand slam titles under her belt, having won the French Open back in 2021. Winning two grand slam titles is a lot more than winning one. Once you have multiple grand slam titles under your belt, that puts you in a whole new tier of greatness and Krejcikova has done just that. At 28 years of age, Krejcikova still has time to add to her collection. It'll be interesting to see if she is able to win any more grand slams and if she does, whether she'll have to wait as long as she did to win her third as it took her to win her second. 

#3. Novak Djokovic is still a threat: While he wasn't able to win it all this year, just by reaching the final after having a knee operation following the French Open, Novak Djokovic showed that he is still a contender at grand slams. I don't know how many more he'll win, but I would be very surprised if he doesn't end up winning at least a couple more grand slams before it's all said and done. He's towards the end of his career, but he still has some gas left in the tank, I think. 

#4. Jasmine Paolini's time is coming: After reaching the final of the French Open, Jasmine Paolini was able to reach the final at Wimbledon, coming up just short against Barbora Krejcikova. Paolini is now ranked #5 in the world and will enter the US Open with a lot of momentum. It'll be interesting to see how the rest of the summer and season goes for Paolini. It feels like it's only a matter of time before she finally breaks through and wins her first grand slam. 

#5. Daniil Medvedev is still knocking on the door: Daniil Medvedev reached the semifinals of Wimbledon for the second straight season, falling to Carlos Alcaraz 7-6, 3-6, 4-6, 4-6. Ranked #5 in the world, Medvedev continues to show that he is a threat at grand slams. He's reached the final of the Australian Open three times and then of course has the 2021 US Open singles title as well. I don't think he's done winning grand slams, but with Carlos Alcaraz now coming up in full force, he has his work cut out for him. 

#6. Elena Rybakina falls a bit short of second Wimbledon title: Elena Rybakina fell to Barbora Krejcikova in the semifinals 6-3, 3-6, 4-6. Rybakina came in seeded 4th and is currently ranked #4 in the world. Rybakina was gunning for her second Wimbledon title and second grand slam title as she won Wimbledon in 2022. She's only 25 years of age, so she still has plenty of time to add more to her total. She just wasn't quite able to do it this time around. 

#7. Jannik Sinner had a disappointing tournament: For most players, reaching the quarterfinals would be considered a solid tournament. But when you come in ranked #1 in the world as Jannik Sinner did, anything short of winning it all is a disappointment. Sinner fell to Medvedev in the quarterfinals 7-6, 4-6, 6-7, 6-2, 3-6. Sinner reached the semifinals in 2023, so he's capable of going deeper. It'll be interesting to see if he is able to finish the season strong after getting off to a great start with that Australian Open title. 

#8. Coco Gauff had a really disappointing tournament: If you read my preview, you would know that I picked Coco Gauff to win it all on the women's side. She didn't even come close as she went down in the 4th round in straight sets to 19th seed Emma Navarro 4-6, 3-6. Gauff came in seeded 2nd in the tournament and all eyes were on her to make a deep run and possibly win her first Wimbledon. It obviously wasn't meant to be. The 4th round is the furthest she's gone on the grass, so clearly she does need to figure some things out. 

#9. Ben Shelton had a solid tournament: One of the things I was looking for going into Wimbledon was how the young American Ben Shelton would do. He ended up having his best Wimbledon ever as he reached the 4th round before falling to the top seed Jannik Sinner 2-6, 4-6, 6-7. At just 21 years of age, Shelton has a very bright future. He should feel good about how this Wimbledon went provided he's able to build on it and improve. 

#10. Iga Świątek needs to figure out the grass: Iga Świątek came in ranked #1 in the world and has won five grand slam titles, four of which are at the French Open. Of all the grand slams, Wimbledon is the one she has the most trouble at and this year was no exception as she went down in the 3rd round to Yulia Putintseva 6-3, 1-6, 2-6.  Świątek is well on her way to being an all-time great, but right now she's more of an all-time great on the clay. The other surfaces, especially grass, she still needs to figure out. 

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