PICTURE: Carlos Alcaraz's heartbroken look at Rafael Nadal during painful Paris Olympics doubles loss goes viral

A picture of a seemingly heartbroken Carlos Alcaraz looking at his idol Rafael Nadal during the Spanish duo's 2024 Paris Olympics campaign went viral after their quarterfinal defeat. The blockbuster duo's dream run was ended by Team USA's Rajeev Ram and Austin Krajicek in straight sets.

Alcaraz and Nadal were announced as the doubles pair for Spain at the Olympics earlier in June. The former expressed excitement about pairing up with his idol and questioned fans online about what the duo should be nicknamed. Alcaraz eventually selected the name 'NadAlcaraz' for the pair.

The Spanish duo faced a monumental task in the first round against sixth-seeds Maximo Gonzalez and Andres Molteni but ousted the Argentines in straight sets. They followed it up with yet another impressive win against the Dutch duo of Wesley Koolhof and Tallon Griekspoor to reach the quarterfinals.

The duo's run was ended in the last-eight by fourth seeds Rajeev Ram and Austin Krajicek 6-2, 6-4 in an hour and 37 minutes. A picture of a seemingly heartbroken Carlos Alcaraz looking at Rafael Nadal after their quarterfinal loss has gone viral on X (formerly Twitter).

"This picture broke me💔 you can feel how important for him to not let down Rafa," the fan tweeted.

The tweet has since garnered nearly 90,000 views and 4,000 likes since it was posted.

It is no secret to tennis fans that Alcaraz's favorite player is the 22-time Major champion and the Spaniard has reiterated his love for the 38-year-old on multiple occasions. The World No. 3 had stated his intention of wanting to team up with Nadal for doubles at the 2024 Paris Olympics earlier this year despite the latter's injury troubles at the time.

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"It was very special" - Carlos Alcaraz thanked Rafael Nadal after their dream run came to an end at the 2024 Paris Olympics

Carlos Alcaraz and Rafael Nadal at the Paris Olympics (Image source: GETTY)

Carlos Alcaraz thanked his idol Rafael Nadal on Instagram for sharing the court with him and representing Spain. The Spaniard expressed his disappointment at the result but said that he had learned a lot for the future and called his overall experience special.

"Thank you very much Rafa for this week and for having shared the track with me playing for 🇪🇸! Couldn't be today, but I'm taking a lot of things for the future! It was very special! ❤️ @rafaelnadal," Alcaraz captioned the post.

Alcaraz's quest for a medal is still alive in the singles. He defeated Tommy Paul 6-3, 7-6(7) on Thursday, August 1, to reach the semifinals at the Paris Olympics.