Alexander Zverev accepts a wild card for Rotterdam and meets a trickster
Alexander Zverev has accepted a wildcard for the ATP 500 tournament in Rotterdam (March 1 to 7).
by Florian Goosmann
last edit: Feb 27, 2021, 10:25 am
Zverev, currently the world ranking winner, is third in Rotterdam, ahead of Australian Open finalists Daniil Medvedev and Stefanos Tsitsipas.
Zverev has landed in the upper half of the tableau, at the beginning he meets the Kazakh trick player Alexander Bublik (ATP No. 46). It is the first meeting at ATP level between the two.
Who is Alexander Bublik?
In recent years, Bublik has repeatedly given a bad image on the tennis courts and complained, among other things , of how much he hated tennis. "I hate every day that I have to play it. I hate to fight, I don't like it." He also admitted that he was a professional tennis player just for the money. However, he later qualified his statements. Bublik is still considered an entertaining player who occasionally also sprinkles the serve from below.
Zverev: semi-final against Medvedev?
Should Zverev overcome his opening hurdle, he would meet the winner of the game between Tommy Paul and Lorenzo Sonego, in the quarterfinals it could go against Roberto Bautista Agut, who was seeded five, in a possible semi-final against Medvedev.
Medvedev, meanwhile, will face Dusan Lajovic in round 1, Tsitsipas will face Egor Gerasimov.
Rotterdam: Also Struff, Wawrinka and Murray there
Also at the start in Rotterdam are Jan Lennard Struff (meets David Goffin), Stan Wawrinka (against Karen Khachanov) and Felix Auger-Aliassime (against Kei Nishikori).
Andy Murray is also in the main field thanks to a wildcard: The former world number one plays against Robin Haase.
Alexander Zverev was most recently at the Australian Open, where he lost in four sets after a strong tournament in the quarter-finals despite some chances against Novak Djokovic.