Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal on Same Side of Bracket After Olympic Tennis Men's Draw

Two of tennis' biggest legends will have the chance to reignite their rivalry during the Paris Olympics.

Per ESPN, Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal are on the same side of the men's draw for the Olympics. If they are victorious in their respective first-round matchups, the longtime rivals will meet in a marquee showdown in the second round.

Djokovic will begin his quest for his first Olympic gold medal against Australian Matthew Ebden while Nadal will take on Hungarian Marton Fucsovics. Reigning French Open champion Carlos Alcaraz will face Lebanese player Hady Habib.

On the women's side, world No. 1 Iga Swiatek of Poland will face Irina-Camelia Begu of Romania in the first round. Second-seeded Coco Gauff of Team USA will meet Australian Ajla Tomljanović.

Nadal won Olympic gold as a singles competitor in Beijing in 2008 and another while competing in doubles alongside Marc Lopez at the 2016 Rio Olympics. Djokovic's lone Olympic medal was a bronze during the Beijing Games.

The tennis tournament in the Paris Olympics will be played at Roland Garros, the same site as the French Open. The familiar surface will undoubtedly be beneficial to Nadal, as 14 of his 22 career Grand Slam titles were won at the French Open.

Djokovic and Nadal had met at least once a year from 2006 to 2022. In 59 career matches against one another, Djokovic holds a slight edge with a 30-29 record. However, Nadal leads with an 11-7 record in major tournaments and a 5-4 mark in major finals.

First-round play for the men's and women's tennis tournaments at the Paris Olympics will begin on Saturday. The field on the men's side is considered wide open after world No. 1 Jannik Sinner opted to withdraw from the Olympic Games due to tonsilitis.

Nadal and Djokovic will be looking to hold off a young field of competitors and add to their legendary careers, but they will have to get past one another to do so.