Novak Djokovic 'best tennis player in history', Carlos Alcaraz deserves admiration for winning Olympics silver against him: Rafael Nadal's uncle Toni

Rafael Nadal's uncle Toni has hailed Novak Djokovic after the Serb secured his maiden Olympic gold medal in Paris. Toni also praised his compatriot Carlos Alcaraz for taking home the silver.

Djokovic’s win was unexpected, especially after he had undergone surgery for a severe knee injury suffered during the French Open. Despite that, he overcame the likes of Australia’s Matthew Ebden, Spain’s Rafael Nadal, Germany’s Dominik Koepfer, Greece’s Stefanos Tsitsipas, and Italy’s Lorenzo Musetti, before facing Alcaraz in the final.

The 24-time Grand Slam champion triumphed over the Spaniard 7-6(3), 7-6(2), avenging his Wimbledon final loss from just a month ago. Meanwhile, Musetti secured third place by defeating Canada’s Felix Auger-Aliassime in the bronze medal match.

Following that, Toni Nadal wrote in his column for El País that while Carlos Alcaraz's loss to Novak Djokovic could have gone differently, the World No. 3 deserves admiration for putting up a strong fight against "the best tennis player in history."

"The images of Carlos [Alcaraz] crying on the court with clear signs of grief and frustration have left us with a bitter feeling, but they must not make us think that this is a defeat," Toni wrote.

"He lost a match that could have been in his favour, giving his best at all times, fighting until the last ball as we know he usually does, and holding in suspense an entire country that enjoyed watching him for his great tennis and his passion," he added.

The veteran coach continued:

"His silver medal against the best tennis player in history deserves, without a doubt, all our admiration."

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Rafael Nadal congratulates Novak Djokovic and Carlos Alcaraz for Paris Olympics 2024 heroics

Carlos Alcaraz (L) and Rafael Nadal pictured at the 2024 Paris Olympics (Source: Getty)

Rafael Nadal took to Instagram Stories to congratulate Novak Djokovic and Carlos Alcaraz for their heroics at the 2024 Paris Olympics. The Spaniard commended the Serb for completing the Career Golden Slam (winning all four Majors and the Olympic gold).

"Congrats Novak on completing the (Career) Golden Slam and being able to achieve what you wanted. Well done," the 22-time Major champion wrote.

Nadal then offered words of encouragement to Alcaraz and thanked him for bringing a medal to Spain.

"Carlos, although I know that today is a difficult day, appreciate a medal that is very important for the whole country; with time you will see that it is for you too. Thank you for this incredible week and for a medal that you give to Spanish sport," he posted.

Nadal and Alcaraz teamed up for doubles in Paris and formed a strong partnership despite being first-time partners. They reached the quarterfinals but were knocked out by the eventual silver medalists, Rajeev Ram and Austin Krajicek of the United States.