Alexander Zverev after Olympic victory: "This gold belongs to all of Germany"
Even when the night fell over Tokyo, the greatness of this day and triumph had not yet completely sunk in with Alexander Zverev .
by Jörg Allmeroth
last edit: Aug 01, 2021, 03:16 pm
Somehow he was “completely gone”, said the gold medalist at some point during his interview marathon for the press, radio and television and once more shook his head in disbelief: “It is absolutely incredible. I am an Olympic champion. Is that really true now? "
That was it. And without any doubt in a spectacular final duel, which was nothing less than a great moment for Zverev. For him, the gifted, but so far often unfinished. But also for German tennis and for the entire German Olympic team, which had suffered many a setback on land and in the water in the first days in Tokyo.
The 24-year-old from Hamburg won 6: 3 and 6: 1 on this memorable August 1, 2021 in just 69 minutes against the Russian Karen Khachanov, the German frontman made the difficulty of the challenge look playfully easy and showed one in the most important match of his career the strongest accomplishments of his career. Exactly at 6:37 p.m. local time, Zverev sank to the ground on the Olympic Center Court, drunk with happiness, and 20 minutes later the gold medal finally dangled around his neck.
Mischa praises Sascha Zverev: "I'm exhausted myself, what he put there"
Zverev's unlikely Olympic fairy tale was perfect, the first German victory since the double success of Boris Becker and Michael Stich in Barcelona in 1992. And the first individual triumph since Steffi Graf's legendary appearance in Seoul in 1988. "Standing in line with these players is overwhelming," said Zverev, "it's a day I'll never forget." from "Eurosport" Mischa Zverev, "I'm tired of what he put there myself."
On the home straight of this Olympic competition, the younger Zverev was actually the figure that outshone everything - a man who was on a gold mission and no longer allowed anything or anyone to slow him down. Not even from the supposedly unbeatable Capitano Novak Djokovic , whom he inflicted a traumatic semi-final defeat after a 1: 6, 2: 3 deficit. Tennis players often end up rudely in everyday reality after such a high-altitude flight, and defeat against the next, presumably easier opponent is quickly conceded. But Zverev dictated the final match against Khachanov in a grandiose way, he played from the first to the last minute with inner conviction, passion, precision and relentless power.
Alexander Zverev: "The best week of my life"
Almost a year ago Zverev missed the first Grand Slam title at the US Open, after a dominant game and 2-0 set lead against Austrian Dominic Thiem, the German was still defeated in a bitter five-set drama. Against Khachanov there was no trembling, hesitation or hesitation on the global Olympic stage after a clear lead, the German never gave up his hands-on, self-confident attitude. “This victory is actually the greatest victory that you can celebrate,” said Zverev later, “I couldn't even imagine being an Olympic champion. That makes up for everything I've taken on in my career. It was just the best week of my life. "
Zverev was inspired by the Olympic feeling right from the start when he was digging for gold. The Hamburger is too easily labeled as a cold egomaniac or self-centered multi-millionaire, but at the bottom of his heart he is an absolute team player. In the past, he always felt comfortable with his pals from German tennis when it came to Davis Cup appearances or matches at the ATP Cup, another team competition. In Tokyo, Zverev enjoyed life in the Olympic flat share, the encounters with other athletes. "Everyone who is not at the games has missed something big," said Zverev, now the first German men's individual winner. Like Tommy Haas and Nicolas Kiefer, he, too, had to listen to comparisons with the meanwhile old gentlemen Becker and Stich, and now he is a bit ahead of the two Wimbledon champions himself.
"This medal belongs to all of Germany"
This August 1st can also be a turning point in Zverev's complicated and eventful career - a day that reconciles him and the sports-loving public in Germany. Zverev was put on the wrong track by his former manager Patricio Apey at a young age , the business man already saw the teenager as a world star who had to be presented in the big markets. Germany was seen as a sideline, the German media were negligible. So a public image of Zverev established itself in which he did not really belong to his birth and home country, looked like a foreign body. Only since business matters have also been in family hands, especially with brother Mischa, has Zverev been on a kind of reconciliation tour with the fans in this country - even if there is still room for emotional increases. In Tokyo, in any case, Zverev dedicated his victory to the entire German team and the “fans who watched it at home”: “I didn't play a second for myself, but for an entire country. This medal belongs not only to me, but to all of Germany. "
When Zverev said that, he looked as if he had been freed from a burden - like a man who has finally shaken off the huge ballast that he had to lug around with him since his first appearances on the tennis circuit. As a great talent, as an upcoming Grand Slam champion and first in the world rankings, he had been traded in series. He also won titles early on, even becoming world champion of the ATP professionals at the age of 21 on a November weekend in London, where he defeated Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic in the semifinals and final. The very big Grand Slam coup did not materialize, however, this triumph that changes a tennis life that can relieve a lot of pressure and tension.
There are no certainties in the brutal world of professional tennis. But with his Olympic victory, Zverev has opened up the tempting opportunity to go through tour life a little easier in the future. Perhaps like Scotland's "Braveheart" Andy Murray, who really got off to a flying start after his Olympic victory in London in 2012 and quickly won his first Grand Slam title.