News release from Texas A&M Athletics:
PARIS – Texas A&M Athletics Hall of Famer Austin Krajicek and partner Rajeev Ram of the United States took down the legendary Spanish duo of Rafael Nadal and Carlos Alcarez in the doubles quarterfinals of the 2024 Paris Olympics men’s tennis bracket on Wednesday at iconic Roland-Garros Stadium.
Krajicek and Ram started out with an immediate service break in the first game and rode that advantage to a 4-2 count. In the seventh game of the frame, the Americans got their second break and took a commanding lead to ultimately take the set, 6-2.
Team USA and Spain went back-and-forth in the second set to a 3-3 score halfway through the frame. Nadal and Alcaraz had the serve in game seven but failed to pick up a point to give the Americans the break, 4-3. The teams would split the next two games, until Krajicek and Ram had the serve up 5-4.
Spain took a 40-15 lead in the 10th game with its back against the wall, but with Krajicek at the service line, Team USA rallied back to deuce. After one match point was thwarted, Krajicek settled in and rocketed his lefty serve right on the line for an ace to seal the victory (6-2, 6-4).
Krajicek and Ram guaranteed themselves a chance to compete for a medal by advancing to the semis. Krajicek finished fourth at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics and will look to earn the first Olympic medal of his career. Team USA will take on Tomas Machac and Adam Pavlasek of the Czech Republic (Czechia) on Aug. 1 at approximately 7:45 a.m. CT.
Krajicek lettered for the Aggies from 2008-11 and was inducted into the Texas A&M Athletics Hall of Fame in 2021. He won the 2011 NCAA Doubles Championship and was a four-time doubles All-American. The Brandon, Florida, native won the 2023 French Open to claim the first Grand Slam Title of his career.
Nadal, one of the greatest players of all-time, won Olympic Gold in doubles in 2016 and has over 100 career titles in singles and doubles. He is regarded as one of the best on clay playing surfaces, boasting a 114-5 record at Roland Garros alone. Alcarez has already cemented himself as one of the sports’ greats at just 20-years-old. Alcaraz has four Grand Slam Titles since 2022 and is currently the world’s No. 3 player in singles.
For more information on Olympic schedule and draws, visit Olympics.com. To view the broadcast schedule, refer to nbcolympics.com.