Alexander Zverev before comeback: "I can live with it"
Alexander Zverev will celebrate his comeback on the big tennis stage in Saudi Arabia in a few weeks. The native of Hamburg is looking forward to the exhibition event in many ways.
by Michael Rothschädl
last edit: Nov 28, 2022, 07:27 pm
"I'm just happy to be back on court." At least that's what you can believe in Alexander Zverev. Because the German radiates this feeling with every pore of his body - also and especially in conversation with the organizers of the Diriyah Tennis Cup, where Zverev will celebrate his comeback on the tournament stage in a few weeks. The fact that the event in Saudi Arabia is only an exhibition event does not spoil this joy.
"It will be a high-class tournament," emphasizes Zverev. After all, the best players in the world are present. And: "I have the feeling that everyone will be in good shape because they come from either the Davis Cup Finals or the Nitto ATP Finals." And these two major events were just not that long ago. "Everyone will still play great tennis, I hope I can keep up with them."
Zverev is looking forward to seeing you again
But the native of Hamburg is not only looking forward to the sporting showdown, he also missed his long-time competitors personally. "Although we were competitors, I also have great friends there. And I missed seeing the guys on the tour." Specifically, Dominic Thiem, for example, whom Zverev has not really seen for almost two years. "He was injured in 2021, I was injured in 2022 - so in a way we missed each other," said Zverev.
The tournament in Saudi Arabia is primarily important for match practice, as Zverev emphasizes: "You don't want the first tournament (note after the injury) to take place in Australia again, because then you have the feeling that you are okay maybe physically fit, maybe you're in the best shape of your life, but if you haven't played a match in seven months, it's still different," said the German. "That's why I think Saudi Arabia fits in perfectly."
Zverev clean with injury
However, the German has finished with his injury - even if it was a process with many setbacks that came on the way back after the initial injury. "You have to accept these setbacks, that was a little unfortunate, but nothing happened," said Zverev, who actually wanted to celebrate his comeback at the Davis Cup in Hamburg in September.
Nevertheless, the German has made his peace with the past period of suffering: "I can live with it (note with the injury) - namely because it happened during the semifinals of the French Open when I was trying to achieve one of my life goals ", explained Zverev. "It didn't happen while snowboarding or skiing - it wasn't a stupid accident." And: "At the end of the day I also realized what life is like without tennis." This also meant that he now appreciates this life much more.