Tennis recap 2024: Rafael Nadal’s retirement, Novak Djokovic’s Olympics gold and Jannik Sinner-Iga Swiatek doping fiasco make headlines | Tennis News

From the Imperial Blue courts of Australia to the red clay in Roland Garros, here are some moments that we couldn’t look past in Tennis.
In one of the biggest moments in the hory of the sports, let alone tennis, the second colossus of the mythical Big 3, Rafael Nadal announced his retirement in 2024 with his last match being a Davis Cup tie for Spain against Botic van de Zandschulp in Málaga.
The two-time Olympic champion (singles in Beijing 2008 and doubles in Rio 2016) concluded his career with won 14 French Open wins. Throughout his stellar career, Nadal has five Davis Cup victories and is one of just three men – along with Djokovic and Andre Agassi – to have won all four Grand Slams and an Olympic singles gold medal.
Djokovic’s Olympic Gold
Serbia’s Novak Djokovic gained another feather to his cap defeating Spain’s Carlos Alcaraz in straight sets in the men’s singles final at the 2024 Paris Olympics. Djokovic defeated Alcaraz 7-6 (7-3), 7-6 (7-2) to earn his first Olympic gold medal. This was his final major victory, missing from his trophy case of 24 Grand Slam trophies.
Djokovic has spent most of his career at No. 1 in the rankings, more than any other man or woman. Before the gold in 2024, he already had an Olympics medal from 2008, but it was a bronze, which he emphasized was insufficient.
Sinner and Swiatek Doping FiascoThe tennis world was also rocked this year due to some high profile doping scandals with the International Tennis Integrity Agency (ITIA) filing charges against world No. 1 Jannik Sinner and Iga Swiatek.
Sinner tested positive for an anabolic steroid on two occasions in March but was spared a penalty after the ITIA determined he was not to blame. The case looked to be closed until September, when WADA filed an appeal with the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS), stating that “the finding of ‘no fault or negligence’ was not correct under the applicable rules” and seeking that Sinner be suspended for one to two years.
Swiatek also accepted a one-month suspension in November after testing positive for the banned substance trimetazidine. The polish player accepted a one-month penalty from the ITIA after testing positive for a banned drug in August.
Alacraz Grand Slam record
As of 2024, Carlos Alcaraz has won four Grand Slams with the French Open and Wimbledon titles his acquisitions for the year.
He had won his first Grand Slam title at the 2022 US Open, defeating Norway’s Casper Ruud 6-4, 2-6, 7-6, and 6-3. He won his second Grand Slam title defeating Novak Djokovic in the 2023 Wimbledon Championship. He defeated Djokovic in a five-set thriller to claim his first Wimbledon title.
In 2024, he won the French Open, making him an all-surface Grand Slam champion. He also won his second Wimbledon title defeating Novak Djokovic in straight sets in a rematch of the 2023 final.

Bee Invasion 
Carlos Alcaraz was stung on the side of his forehead a swarm of bees during his Indian Wells quarterfinal versus Alexander Zverev. Umpire Mohamed Lahyani was forced to halt play in the third game after bees invaded the court in California. The match was delayed for an hour and forty minutes before reigning champion Alcaraz won 6-3, 6-1.

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