Alexander Zverev is confident of claiming a second Olympic gold medal at the Paris games despite picking up an injury at Wimbledon earlier this month.
Zverev slipped during his third-round triumph against Cameron Norrie in SW19, bowing out of the competition in a five-set to Taylor Fritz in the following round.
The world number four has since competed in the Hamburg Open, a title he won a year ago, but fell at the final hurdle to Arthur Fils in a decisive final set tie-break.
Zverev, who became the first German to win an Olympic gold medal in singles since Steffi Graf did so in 1988, beat Karen Khachanov in the final in Tokyo four years ago.
The German described his injury as a bone edema and torn capsule and said that it did not require surgery ahead of the games.
"To be honest, you know, the risk will stay for the next two, three, four weeks maybe because that's how long the bone heals, and that's what everybody told me," Zverev said.
"But, at the end of the day I also knew that I don't want to rest for four weeks because, now we're playing on the surface where I don't see that big of a risk of doing the same motion again and doing the same movement again."
The tennis will take place at Roland Garros, a venue well-known to Zverev who reached the French Open final earlier this year, losing out on a first grand slam title to Carlos Alcaraz in five sets.
Zverev is also on the shortlist of German athletes who could be flagbearer for the nation during Friday's opening ceremony.
"If someone told me that I should walk in as a flag bearer, it would mean even more to me, to be honest (than winning the Olympics)," Zverev was quoted by SpilXperten.
"Leading an entire nation and so many top German athletes into the Olympics is simply the greatest honour an athlete can receive.
"And of course, the gold medal I won at the last Olympics is one of the highest achievements you can have in sports and for me personally the greatest success in my career."
Vondrousova pulls out of Olympics as Hurkacz fails to recover in time
Marketa Vondrousova has withdrawn from the upcoming Paris Olympics with a hand injury.
The former Wimbledon champion, whose title defence was ended by Jessica Bouzas Maneiro in the first round earlier this month, was a silver medallist in Tokyo three years ago, losing out on gold to Belinda Bencic.
The Czech was aiming to go the extra step this time around at Roland-Garros, where she reached the French Open final in 2019.
However, Vondrousova has instead chosen to focus on preparing for the final major of 2024 at the US Open in August.
"I am very sorry, but due to health reasons, I will not be participating in this year's Olympic Games in Paris," she posted on Instagram.
"I hoped until the last moment that I could go at least in doubles, but problems with my hand won't allow me on the court."
Vondrousova joins Aryna Sabalenka, Ons Jabeur and Emma Raducanu on the absentee list for the women's tournament, while the men's event will not feature world number seven Hubert Hurkacz.
The Pole, who was forced to retire with a knee injury during his second-round match at Wimbledon, has failed to recover in time.
Meanwhile, Poland's Hubert Hurkacz, ranked seventh in the world, has also withdrawn from the men's competition.
The 27-year-old has not recovered from a knee injury which forced him to retire from his second-round match at Wimbledon.
"My rehabilitation is going very well, and I am making continuous progress," he said in a video posted on his Instagram Stories. "However, my team and I have decided that I am unable to compete in the Olympic Games in Paris.
"This was a very, very difficult decision because I have always dreamed of representing Poland at the Olympics, being able to win a medal for the national team, but unfortunately, my health does not allow it this year."
Nadal aiming to improve to match Alcaraz's 'great level'
Rafael Nadal is "convinced" Carlos Alcaraz will be at a "great level" for the Olympics ahead of their anticipated doubles team-up.
The pair will be representing Spain at the upcoming Games in Paris, with both also participating in the singles event.
Nadal reached his first final since his French Open triumph in 2022 at the Swedish Open on Sunday, eventually losing out to Nuno Borges in straight sets.
He has previously won two Olympic gold medals though, his first in the singles at the 2008 Games in Beijing, and the second at Rio 2016 in the doubles.
Meanwhile, Alcaraz has won back-to-back grand slams this year, winning at Roland Garros in June before beating Novak Djokovic at Wimbledon earlier this month.
The 21-year-old is competing at the Olympics for the first time in his career ahead of the hard-court swing of the season.
Nadal admitted he was not happy with his performance level in the final in Bastad and is determined to improve to match Alcaraz's level.
"I'm really looking forward to being part of the Olympic team and representing Spain," Nadal said.
"This is the most important event in sport. I hope I can find the energy I need and do some good training.
"If I manage to play good tennis, I will also do so in doubles, but I must analyse well what happened this week and work hard.
"I am convinced that Carlos will be at a great level because he is coming in with confidence. We will train together this week."
Nadal pleased to reach Bastad final without injury despite disappointment in performance
Rafael Nadal felt his performance levels at the Swedish Open were "so far from what they should be", but was pleased to emerge from his run to the final in Bastad without any injuries.
The 22-time major winner reached his first ATP championship match since winning his 14th French Open title two years ago, losing out to Nuno Borges in straight sets.
Nadal saw off Leo Borg and Cameron Norrie, before battling past Mariano Navone and Duje Ajdukovic in three sets. However, he was no match for Borges, who was a commanding 6-3 6-2 winner in the final.
The injury-plagued Spaniard opted to skip Wimbledon to focus on participating in the forthcoming Paris Olympics, where he will play in the singles and doubles events.
And though he admitted he wanted to play better in Bastad, Nadal was thrilled to come through multiple demanding matches unscathed.
"The level was so far from what it should be. Probably, the energy too. It has been a long week with long matches," Nadal told reporters.
"I don't have damage [to my body], that's important - but mentally and physically, I'm not used to playing four days in a row and playing long matches.
"I need to analyse well and find the reason why I played that way, even if the energy wasn't right. Things like this can happen, and that's the situation.
"I played the final, that's positive. I was able to play long matches without having an injury. That's good.
"In some ways, I felt that I arrived here practising much better than what I played in the tournament during the whole week. That's something that I am not satisfied with."
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