Rio Olympics: Rain wipes out tennis, threatens Rafael Nadal triple gold bid

30-year-old Spaniard is playing his first tournament in two months after being forced to quit the French Open with a left wrist injury

With his long hair, sleeveless shirt, capri pants and bulging biceps, the teenager from Mallorca in Spain looked a typical street fighter
With his long hair, sleeveless shirt, capri pants and bulging biceps, the teenager from Mallorca in Spain looked a typical street fighter
AFPPTI Rio de Janeiro
Last Updated : Aug 11 2016 | 11:52 AM IST
Torrential rain wiped out the entire 25-match tennis programme at the Olympics on Wednesday, threatening to scupper Rafael Nadal's triple gold medal assault.

Among the matches cancelled were all three due to feature Nadal who is still in the singles, men's doubles and mixed doubles.

The 30-year-old Spaniard is playing his first tournament in two months after being forced to quit the French Open with a left wrist injury.

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He has already played five matches in three days in Rio and on Wednesday had been due to tackle France's Gilles Simon for a place in the men's quarter-finals.

Nadal was then set to play with Marc Lopez against Daniel Nestor and Vasek Pospisil of Canada for a spot in the doubles final.

The 14-time major winner was also scheduled to play mixed doubles for the first time in his career with French Open champion Garbine Muguruza.

The Spanish pair are drawn to face Lucie Hradecka and Radek Stepanek of the Czech Republic in the 16-pair tournament.

Also scrubbed from the schedule was defending champion Andy Murray's third round tie against Fabio Fognini.

Japan's fourth seed Kei Nishikori's match-up with Andrej Martin was another high profile victim.

Juan Martin del Potro, who put out world number one Novak Djokovic, will also have to come back Thursday to face Taro Daniel of Japan.

Read our full coverage on the 2016 Rio Olympics

The entire women's singles quarter-final programme was also put back a day.

Elina Svitolina, the conqueror of Serena Williams, is to face Petra Kvitova while Monica Puig meets Laura Siegemund.

The other two quarter-finals see second seed Angelique Kerber tackle Britain's Johanna Konta and Madison Keys, the seventh seed, up against Daria Kasatkina.
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First Published: Aug 11 2016 | 10:42 AM IST

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