Lebanon's Habib in Paris Olympics dreamland after earning surprise clash with Alcaraz

An injury withdrawal opened up a last-minute opportunity in the tennis singles event for the world No 259, who will face the Wimbledon champion in the first round

Hady Habib will represent Lebanon in the singles and doubles of the Paris Olympics tennis event. Photo: Hady Habib / Instagram

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Life comes at you fast sometimes; in a good way.

Less than four weeks ago, Lebanese tennis player Hady Habib had no idea he had any chance of competing at the Paris Olympics.

He was ranked in the 250-300 bracket, well outside the cutoff for the Olympics entry list, grinding his way through the Challenger Tour, where he recently reached his first final.

Then a surprising email landed in his inbox. Habib was informed by the Lebanese Tennis Federation that he had received a universality place (wildcard invitation handed to underrepresented countries at the Games) to compete in doubles alongside his compatriot Benjamin Hassan at the Paris 2024 Olympics.

“I got caught by surprise. I was just super happy and proud to be able to say I’m an Olympian,” Habib told The National in a phone interview from the French capital on Thursday.

But then an even bigger surprise came his way. World No 7 Hubert Hurkacz announced on Tuesday he was forced to withdraw from the Olympic Games, due to an injury he had picked up at Wimbledon earlier this month.

Turns out Habib was the first alternate available to replace him in the singles draw and the 25-year-old Lebanese now finds himself competing in both singles and doubles at the Olympics, at the iconic Roland Garros venue no less.

“It’s honestly a dream come true,” said the Texas-born Habib.

The surprises don’t stop there. On Thursday, the Olympics tennis draw was made and it put Habib against none other than world No 3 and reigning Roland Garros and Wimbledon champion Carlos Alcaraz in the opening round.

Habib will now make his Olympic debut against a superstar on Court Suzanne Lenglen at Roland Garros on Saturday. A month ago the Olympics weren’t even on his radar.

“I've never really been at this stage or been in the same event as all these players. It comes with excitement, a little bit of stress, but it's good stress because you're ready to play and it's just an amazing feeling,” said Habib of his reaction to drawing Alcaraz in the first round.

“I love to watch tennis and I've seen some of his matches and I know how amazing he can play. It's just going to be incredible to be able to play against him.”

Habib has played against top-100 players just twice in his career so far, with his highest-ranked opponent being Yoshihito Nishioka, who stood at No 84 in the world when they met in the Davis Cup in February.

Habib kicked off his professional career mid-2021 after graduating from Texas A&M University, where he was the No 1-ranked collegiate tennis player in the United States in his final months there. He hit a career-high ranking of 259 two months ago and is now ready to compete in the biggest event of his life.

“I feel great. I’ve competed in a lot of Challengers. I made my first final in singles and I won three Challenger titles in doubles, so I definitely feel like my level got better. I’m in good form, I have no injuries, I’m healthy. So I’m just grateful to be here and I’m ready to give it my all,” he said.

Habib has never played at Roland Garros and he’s been soaking in every moment he’s spent at the venue so far.

“It’s been incredible. Being in the same facility as all these great players, the legends basically of the sport. I’m doing my training and I walk in first day in the gym, I see like, Novak [Djokovic], Rafa [Nadal], [Andy] Murray … all these legends just roaming around, it’s an unbelievable experience, it was surreal,” he said.

“This is my first time in Roland Garros. It’s a bit funny because everyone knows their way around and I’m just like walking around trying to figure out where everything is. People are probably just looking at me and trying to find out, what’s this guy doing here, he looks lost. It’s been amazing.”

Habib is one of 10 Lebanese athletes competing at the Olympics and he admits the honour comes with great responsibility. He relies on a famous quote from the legendary Billie Jean King to deal with the pressure with a healthy perspective.

“Us only being 10 athletes, a lot of people are going to be following us, especially from Lebanon, so it’s huge for us. Of course it comes with more pressure, but it’s good, you want to be in this situation. Pressure is a privilege; I really like that quote,” said Habib.

“Lebanon being such a small country, just to even be participating in the Olympics is huge for tennis. You want to be competing at this stage with all these great athletes and I hope to inspire all the younger generation of tennis players in Lebanon that they can achieve their goals as well. This is huge for Lebanon and Lebanese tennis.”

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Besides his singles opener against Alcaraz, Habib will team up with his countryman Hassan to take on experienced Aussie pair Matthew Ebden and John Peers.

Hassan, who at 170 in the world is currently the highest-ranked Arab man in tennis, was granted a universality place in Paris, which made way for Habib’s inclusion in doubles.

“To be able to compete in singles and doubles at the Olympics is mind-boggling, especially playing with Benjamin, I really enjoy playing with him,” Habib added.

“He’s a great guy. We’ve been playing some Davis Cup matches together. We had a really good battle against Brazil with a top-100 team. I think we’re a good team. We’re going to give it our best and enjoy every moment we can.”

Is there any athlete outside of tennis he’d like to bump into at the Olympics?

“Probably one of the basketball players. I’d love to bump into Steph [Curry]," Habib replied. "He’s such a great athlete, I just love watching him play; it would be absolutely sick to bump into him.”