By Martyn Herman
PARIS (Reuters) - The Olympic tennis competition slides into action on Saturday with Rafa Nadal, the undisputed king of Roland Garros, the name on everyone's lips as he plots another golden chapter as the sun goes down on his remarkable career.
This time last year it looked likely the Spaniard's time was up as he battled injuries and barely swung a racket in anger.
But the magnetic pull of an Olympic Games on his beloved Parisian clay has proved irresistible for the 38-year-old whose mere presence promises to upstage everything else.
Serbian top seed Novak Djokovic will have one final attempt to win the Olympic title that has proved so infuriatingly elusive and Iga Swiatek will seek to turn her domination of red clay into gold in the women's singles.
Twice Olympic singles champion Andy Murray will contest his last tournament while Germany's three-time Grand Slam champion Angelique Kerber is also bowing out.
Several high-profile withdrawals, including men's top seed Jannik Sinner and Denmark's Holger Rune, overshadowed the build-up to the start of the tournament on Saturday.
But the prospect of Nadal trying to add to his Olympic medal haul is a tantalising one.
A repeat of his Beijing singles gold in 2008 might be too much to ask, although Djokovic will hardly relish a potential second-round clash with his old French Open nemesis.
But excitement is bubbling about his doubles partnership with Carlos Alcaraz -- the 21-year-old who claimed his fourth Grand Slam title by winning Wimbledon this month.
"I think it's going to be the most-watched team in the Olympics, not to disrespect any other sports, maybe the American basketball team will be as eagerly-anticipated, but this is the dream team for Spain," six-time Grand Slam champion and 1992 Olympic doubles gold medallist Bois Becker told Reuters.
"You have Nadal, one of the all-time greats, playing with his successor trying to win a gold medal. It's fantastic circumstances and it would be great if they do it.
"They are not known for their doubles expertise but Nadal won a doubles Olympic gold (in Rio in 2016). It's fantastic, it could be one for the history books."
Chile's Nicolas Massu, who won doubles and singles gold in Athens in 2004, cannot wait to see Nadal and Alcaraz team up.
"I know Rafa has been preparing for four or five weeks for the Olympics," he told Reuters. "As a fan of tennis it's amazing to see two different generations from the same country playing together, it will be very emotional.
"They will fight. Everyone will want to play them."
Alcaraz will be favourite to continue his remarkable run and win singles gold having just completed the French Open/Wimbledon double. Reigning champion Alexander Zverev will have other ideas, while 24-time Grand Slam champion Djokovic has unfinished business after losing in the semi-final in Tokyo and then missing out on a bronze medal.
"I think Novak was very transparent and open at the beginning of the year that his most important tournament was the Olympics in Paris," Becker, who will be an expert for Eurosport on Discovery+ across Europe, said.
"I think it's natural that you want to win the one that's been so far not in your cabinet."
For the women's singles gold it is hard to look beyond Swiatek who last month claimed a third successive French Open title and fourth overall, by beating Italian Jasmine Paolini.
Swiatek made a tearful second-round exit in Tokyo but on her favourite surface she is in a league of her own.
The battle for women's doubles gold will be fiercely-contested with Czechs Barbora Krejcikova, the newly-crowned Wimbledon champion, and Katerina Siniakova trying to defend their title. American top seeds Coco Gauff and Jessica Pegula and Italian duo Jasmine Paolini and Sara Errani are also contenders.
(Reporting by Martyn Herman; Editing by Toby Davis)
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