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If there’s a silver lining in Atlanta, it’s that the players taking part in that event aren’t going to have to rush to Paris for the Olympics.

So their weather woes aren’t a worst-case scenario.

Because three singles matches were cancelled on Tuesday after heavy rains forced an early-evening evacuation of the stadium. And the forecast isn’t great for Wednesday, either. Even much of Thursday, at this point, is a question mark.

Not unusual for Atlanta. But still a scramble.

Meanwhile, other than some thunderstorm warnings in Umag (and heat warnings), the forecast looks pretty good on the men’s side the rest of the week at the other events. They plan a Saturday finish which, with a number of Olympians in both draws, will be tight as first-rounders will have to finish by Sunday in Paris at the latest.

Kitzbuhel No. 3 seed Tomas Martin Etcheverry, who was to play his second-round (opening) match this morning, withdrew.

The Umag final is scheduled for 8 p.m. because of the year; there are some arrangements made to get any affected players to Paris quickly. Still it’s tight.

Here’s Wednesday’s men’s sked:

ATP Tour – Wednesday, July 24, final results

On the women’s side, a Friday final is planned in both Iasi, Romania and Prague (where the entire Czech squad is basically toiling).

The forecast is great (if hot) in Prague the rest of the week. Friday could be a little more problematic in Romania. Jaqueline Cristian and Mirra Andreeva are the players potentially affected there.

Here’s Wednesday’s women’s sked:

WTA Tour – Wednesday, June 24, 2024 final results

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Gauff to carry the flag for USA

Big tennis news in the bigger Olympic picture, as American Coco Gauff has been selected to carry the US flag in the opening ceremonies, at her first Olympics.

She will share duties with basketball legend LeBron James, whom she has never met before.

This is big-time.

Opening Ceremony Flag Bearer @CocoGauff. 🇺🇸

The moment Coco got the news from her teammate @chris_eubanks96… 🫢#ParisOlympics pic.twitter.com/yjIWPjm6J1
— Team USA (@TeamUSA) July 24, 2024

Gauff, who was just 17, was to make her Olympic debut in Tokyo in 2021. But she tested positive for COVID just before her planned departure, and had to miss it.

In Tokyo, Naomi Osaka lit the Olympic flame. So the sport has had its moments.

Other tennis players expected to be flag bearers in the opening ceremonies are Nicolas Jarry of Chile, and Danka Kovinic of Montenegro.

(Kovinic, currently ranked No. 558, hasn’t actually PLAYED tennis since losing in the first round of the US Open nearly a year ago. So this could well be her highlight).

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Blockbuster mixed doubles draw

The mixed-doubles draw at the Olympics, which is only 16 teams, is selected from among the players already nominated in singles and doubles.

So there tend to be a lot of players missing.

But it could he a serious hightlight of the tennis in Paris.

Here are the nominated teams.

–Alexander Zverev / Laura Siegemund (GER)
–Matthew Ebden / Ellen Perez (AUS)
–Coco Gauff / Taylor Fritz (USA)
–Stefanos Tsitsipas / Maria Sakkari (GRE)
–Félix Auger-Aliassime / Gabriela Dabrowski (CAN)
–Andrea Vavassori / Sara Errani (ITA)
–Marcel Granolllers / Sara Sorribes Tormo (ESP)
–Alexander Bublik / Elena Rybakina (KAZ)
–Mate Pavic / Donna Vekic (CRO)
–Edouard Roger-Vasselin / Caroline Garcia (FRA)
–Daniil Medvedev / Mirra Andreeva (RUS)
–Zhang Zhizhen / Zheng Qinwen (CHN)
–Tomas Machac / Katerina Siniakova (CZE)
–Wesley Koolhof / Demi Schuurs (NED)
–Joe Salisbury / Heather Watson (GBR)
–Kei Nishikori / Ena Shibahara (JPN)

The first alternate team is Holger Rune and Caroline Wozniacki.

Notable non-participants are Leylah Fernandez and Naomi Osaka (although let’s face it, it’s unlikely she’s ever played mixed doubles and also, her ranking might not have been good enough to get them in).

Also missing, of course, Iga Swiatek, who saw her potential mixed partner Hurkacz go down to injury, and viable alternative Jan Zielinski get shut out of the Games competely as a result.

That means that Gauff, Fritz, Garcia, Tsitsipas, Sakkari, Auger-Aliassime, Medvedev, Andreeva, Rybakina, Bublik, Machac, Siniakova, Sorribes Tormo and Siegemund will all attempt to play all three events.

They should all arrive in FINE shape in Canada for the 1000 event right afterwards.

By that we mean … not in particularly fine shape.

But a lot can change between now and then.

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Down the list for Olympic subs

(Correction on this original post, where I indicated that Petros Tsitsipas was the only other player entered in the Olympics with a singles ranking of No. 1206. That is actually … Pavlos Tsitsipas, not Petros. Is he available?)

We’re a day away from the draw ceremony at Roland Garros for the Olympic tennis.

So that means a lot of players coming into Paris with health concerns will have to make a decision on whether they will play (and risk the rest of their season for an bucket-list moment under the rings).

But in the big picture, there’s another issue.

As of last Friday at midnight, the Olympic lists were basically frozen.

Which means that if and when anyone withdraws before Thusday morning, the alternates will have to come from the players already confirmed, on the list and in Paris (or on their way).

That’s why, when Hubert Hurkacz withdrew because of his knee issue, the substitute wasn’t the next eligible player in the rankings (as was reported by some “media” outlets who didn’t do their research).

Instead, it will be Lebanon’s Hady Habib, a Texas-born, Texas A&M raised player who’s currently at No. 275 in the rankings, and was at a career-best No. 259 at the entry deadline. He was to play just doubles, with Benjamin Hassan.

But with the withdrawal, he’ll get to play singles, too. You have to think the 25-year-old never imagined he could actually get here. What a thrill.

But the list of alternates with actual singles rankings on the men’s side couldn’t be slimmer.

Habib, along with Andrea Vavassori (a top doubles player) was the only player who has an actual singles ranking.

There is Pablo Carreño Busta, who had originally been named to the squad in singles but decided to play doubles only. We don’t know if he can renege on that. Or even if the body will allow.

Beyond that, all the other nominated players are doubles specialists: from Petros Tsitsipas to Matthew Ebden to Mate Pavic to Francisco Cabral to Robin Haase (who no longer has a singles ranking but whose career high was No. 33, just before the 2012 Olympics in London).

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Milos not looking 100 per cent

It seems unlikely that there won’t be at least one withdrawal in the next 48 hours.

It’s not like the regular Tour or a Grand Slam, where you can show up and still get your prize money. Your country pride is at stake.

In addition to Holger Rune having some some concerning issues with his wrist, there is also Canadian Milos Raonic.

Raonic, who is trying to push the body as far as it will go this year and also was nominated for Davis Cup in September, didn’t get a wild card at Wimbledon. So he got back on the clay (which he missed in the spring) in Croatia to prepare for the Olympics, for which he’s using his protected ranking.

Except … here’s what our boots on the ground spotted this morning. A lot of knee tape, and some limping. Stay tuned.

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Women’s Olympic alternates

On the women’s side, it’s not nearly as dire.

There are plenty of viable singles players who are already planning to play doubles in Paris who could sub into the singles draw.

The first one is already in: Siniakova. In another universe she’d have already qualified. But because Czechia is SO deep, she was originally shut out of singles despite being top 30.

From looking at the list – and removing those whose countries already have the limit of four singles players – we’ve got them in the following order based upon the rankings at the June 10 deadline:

– Daria Saville (AUS) (No. 84)
– Sara Errani (ITA) (No. 88)
– Lulu Sun (NZL) (No. 126)
– Heather Watson (GBR) (No. 158)

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Double seeds using combined rankings

There was some confusion Tuesday when Open Court posted the lists of the eight seeds in the men’s and women’s doubles events.

If the order seems somewhat jumbled, with non-doubles player Jannnik Sinner at the top and Taylor Fritz and Tommy Paul not far down, it’s because the Olympics is using “combined” rankings to decide the seedings.

It’s not unusual in tennis for players to use their best ranking – whether it be singles or doubles – to enter a tournament. Especially at Grand Slams. But it’s more rare in actual draws.

But it actually makes sense, in a way. Singles players don’t have lower doubles rankings because they’re bad at doubles. Their rankings are low because they don’t play doubles that much.

So Fritz and Paul – ranked No. 11 and No. 13 in singles this week (for a total of 24), just edge out countrymen Rajeev Ram and Austin Krajicek, who are ranked No. 5 and No. 21, respectively, in doubles.

Sinner, at No. 1 in singles and Musetti, at No. 17 (18 total) top the list.

On the women’s side, where more of the singles players play doubles, it looks a little more true to form on the seeding side.

The only real outlier is Danielle Collins, who is ranked No. 153 in doubles but No. 9 in singles.