"Rafael Nadal’s withdrawing after seeing Carlos Alcaraz on his half"; "Seeing him in semis" – Fans react to Spaniard’s Barcelona Open 2024 draw

The Barcelona Open recently released their 2024 men's singles draw and Rafael Nadal finds himself in the same half as fellow Spaniard Carlos Alcaraz.

Nadal gained entry directly into the main draw of the tournament through his protected ranking as he has won the Barcelona Open a record 12 times since turning pro in 2001. It would be his first tour campaign this year after competing at the Brisbane International in January.

The 37-year-old is set to clash with Italy's Flavio Cobolli in the opening round and if he gets through, Alex de Minaur awaits him in the next round.

Nadal has withdrawn from three tournaments this year including the Australian Open, Indian Well Masters, and Monte-Carlo Masters citing fitness issues.

A fan on X (formerly Twitter) joked that another withdrawal might be on the cards for the Spaniard because of the probability of facing first-seed and two-time defending champion Carlos Alcaraz in the semifinals.

"Oh he's definitely withdrawing after seeing Alcaraz on his half of the draw," a fan wrote.

Another fan, however, showed faith in the 22-time Grand Slam champion and claimed that he would reach the semifinals if he plays.

"I am seeing him in the semis at least, if he plays," the fan wrote.

Here are a few more reactions from X:

"I am going with the news “I’ve decided to not play” coming on the last day," a fan said.

"So he will play with Cobolli and then withdraw before match with De Minaur due to minor issue," a fan commented.

"Aside from De Minaur R2, looks like a good draw to test himself," a fan added.

"If we play we will make QF at most I feel," a fan remarked.

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Rafael Nadal leads Carlos Alcaraz 2-1 in the head-to-head

Rafael Nadal (L) and Carlos Alcaraz

The possibility of a Rafael Nadal-Carlos Alcaraz semifinal at the Barcelona Open 2024 has a lot of ifs and buts, however, if it happens, the veteran will enter the court with a 2-1 lead in the head-to-head.

He played his first match against Alcaraz in the Round of 32 of the Madrid Masters in 2021 and clinched a 6-1, 6-2 win. He then defeated the youngster 6-4, 4-6, 6-3 in the semifinals of the Indian Wells Masters the following year.

Carlos Alcaraz managed to win their third encounter during the quarterfinals in Madrid in 2022. He overcame Nadal 6-2, 1-6, 6-3 en route to winning the ATP 1000 event that year.

The two have notably already played against each other once this year. It was, however, an exhibition event called the Netflix Slam, where Alcaraz prevailed 3-6, 6-4, 14-12.