Team USA take silver and bronze in men's doubles tennis as Rajeev Ram/Austin Krajicek and Taylor Fritz/Tommy Paul deliver medals at Paris Olympics
The American tennis contingent ended their Paris Olympics campaign with two medals on the penultimate day, with team USA taking silver and bronze at the men's doubles event. It was the only category in which the Americans managed to win at the 2024 edition of the Olympics.
Taking on Australia's Matthew Ebden and John Peers in the gold medal playoff, No. 4 seeds Rajeev Ram and Austin Krajicek lost in a tight three-setter, which ended in a 10-point tiebreak. The Aussies came back from a set down to win 6-7(6), 7-6(1), 10-8 to win their maiden gold medals at the tournament.
On the other hand, Taylor Fritz and Tommy Paul defeated Czech pair Tomas Machac and Adam Pavlasek in the bronze medal play-off 6-3, 6-4 to win their maiden Olympic medals.
USA was one of the main favorites to win medals in the singles categories with high-ranked players in both men's and women's events. However, it was not to be as Coco Gauff, Danielle Collins, Jessica Pegula, Fritz and Paul all returned empty-handed in the individual level.
Taylor Fritz and Tommy Paul are set to be in action at Canadian Open next week after Paris Olympics run
Following their bronze win at the 2024 Paris Olympics, Taylor Fritz and Tommy Paul are both set to be in action in singles at the Canadian Open starting next week. However, it remains to be seen whether the duo will want to play at the tournament so soon after their recent hectic schedule in Paris.
Fritz was in action in all three events at the Olympics, playing mixed doubles with Coco Gauff in addition to singles. Paul, on the other hand, did not play mixed doubles and only played in singles and men's doubles.
As of now, they are set to be joined by the likes of Jannik Sinner, Alexander Zverev, Daniil Medvedev and Casper Ruud at the ATP 1000 event in Montreal. The two biggest names who have announced that they are skipping the tournament are Carlos Alcaraz and Novak Djokovic, who will be battling it out in the gold medal match in Paris on Sunday.
Meanwhile, Rajeev Ram is also set to play at the Canadian Open, where he will be partnering with Joe Salisbury. Austin Krajicek, however, is an alternate at the tournament, choosing to play with Frances Tiafoe instead.