"Rafael Nadal in his cardboard bed era";"Cannot see them sharing rooms"- Fans react to Carlos Alcaraz & Spaniard staying at Paris 2024 Olympic Village

Tennis fans hilariously reacted to the news of Rafael Nadal and Carlos Alcaraz staying at the 2024 Paris Olympic Village. This will be Nadal's fourth and final appearance at the Games, while Alcaraz will be making his Olympics debut.

Nadal and Alcaraz will represent Spain at the Paris Olympics alongside Cristina Bucsa, Sara Sorribes Tormo, Jaume Munar, Pablo Carreno Busta, Pedro Martinez and Marcel Granollers. The 22-time Grand Slam champion will be competing in both the singles and the doubles event, where he will partner with Alcaraz.

In addition to Nadal and Alcaraz, the duo of Pablo Carreno Busta and Marcel Granollers will also compete in the men's doubles event, while Cristina Bucsa and Sara Sorribes Tormo will partake in the women's doubles event.

Rafael Nadal and Carlos Alcaraz reached Paris recently and will be staying at the Olympic Village, which is spread across three cities - Saint-Denis, Saint Ouen, and LÎle-Saint-Denis, with the other athletes from Spain.

Tennis fans were delighted to see both the former World No.1's at the Village. They took to social media to share their reactions to the same. One fan humorously stated that the Spaniard was in his "cardboard bed era," alluding to the sustainable cardboard beds provided to athletes at the Village.

"Rafa in his cardboard bed era ? 😭 ," a fan posted.

"They will sleep on cardboard bed to? Yepa," a fan wrote.

Another fan wondered whether the 22-time Grand Slam champion received special accommodations, as fans couldn't imagine him sharing a room with Carlos Alcaraz or any other Spanish athlete like Australian players Daria Saville and Ellen Perez are doing.

"So do they get special upgraded rooms or what? I cannot see them sharing rooms the way Daria [Saville] showed us lol. No way!" a fan wrote.

"You’d imagine Nadal would be long past wanting to stay in the Olympic village and would want a bit of Paris hotel comfort for his aging bones. Just saying #Paris2024," a fan posted.

One fan expressed that they were happy to see Rafel Nadal embrace the authentic Olympic experience, while another fan jokingly urged the Spaniard to opt for a five-star hotel to avoid any potential injuries from the cardboard bed.

"I'm so glad they do the real experience and not stay in hotels," a fan posted.

"Oh Rafa! Just book yourself into a 5 star hotel. I beg you! Sleeping on a cardboard bed isn’t necessary!" a fan wrote.

Another fan stated that they cannot imagine the 38-year-old sharing a room with someone.

"really? wow, nice that they'll be in the village. just imagine, Don Rafa sleeping with another player in a tiny room with little more than a bed at his disposal. it's remarkable (Yes, I know it applies to a ton of other world -famous athletes, no shitstorm, plaese)" a fan posted.

Carlos Alcaraz on playing doubles at Paris Olympics with Rafael Nadal: "At the Games we'll talk about that doubles and how we're going to do it"

Rafael Nadal and Carlos Alcaraz

Recently while speaking to ABC Sports, Carlos Alcaraz spoke about his participation at the 2024 Paris Olympics and his doubles event with Rafael Nadal.

Alcaraz stated that he and the former World No.1 have not spoken about their plans and strategy for the doubles event but will do that soon.

"He's also doing his thing, we're doing ours. We talk very little, but when we're at the Games, we'll talk about that doubles and, above all, how we're going to do it," Carlos Alcaraz said (translated from Spanish).

The World No.3 also stated that he is eager to learn from his compatriot who has the experience of competing at the Olympic Games.

Carlos Alcaraz said that he would be the "rookie" during the doubles matches and that he would observe and learn as much as possible from Rafael Nadal.

"I'm not nervous right now. When the time comes, I will be. And yes, obviously, he's already experienced this, he already knows what it's like to play in the Olympics, to win a gold in both singles and doubles. I'm new, I'm the rookie here, so I have to keep my mouth shut and just listen to him," he added

The 22-time Grand Slam champion has two Olympic gold medals. He won his first one at the 2008 Beijing Olympics in the singles category, and second at the 2016 Rio Olympics in the doubles event alongside Marc Lopez.