Alexander Zverev before the French Open: "Go into this tournament with determination"
Alexander Zverev has become one of the favorites in Roland Garros, mainly thanks to his tournament victory in Madrid. Can he already win "the really big dong"?
by Jörg Allmeroth
last edit: May 29, 2021, 09:51 am
Alexander Zverev was already back at home in Monte Carlo when he was shown again in mid-May what awaits him and all his other colleagues at the French Open. Zverev watched from a distance the final of the Masters tournament in Rome, the titans' duel between Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic, and he finally saw how the incomparable force and passion of the Mallorcan matador Nadal led to the tenth title in the "Eternal City" .
Zverev had also lost to Nadal in Rome, in the round of the last eight, he had done well against the clay court king, but lost quite clearly. “You have to get past Rafa if you want to win in Paris,” says Zverev, “and that's the hardest task there is in tennis. With distance."
After all, Zverev's chances of being able to seriously intervene in the title fight at the Roland Garros stadium are better than ever. Zverev has got his elbow injury problems under control, the pain that often hit him hard in spring and was partly responsible for some sporting disappointments. And he has two notable trophy wins this season, the first one in Acapulco in mid-March. But even more to the victory at the Masters in Madrid , in the already hotter preparatory phase for the climax of the clay court in Paris. In Spain's capital, the 24-year-old German triumphed with self-confidence and sovereignty, with the guts and bite that is needed for the persistent sliding exercises in the tennis specialty on sand. "Really impressed" Zverev, finally decided Madrid's tournament impresario Ion Tiriac, "that was very, very good of him."
Alexander Zverev the most successful among the U25-year-olds
Mainly because Zverev beat rows of top players in this top competition in Madrid's mountain air. And also Nadal, who traditionally has some problems in Spain's capitals, but is also an extremely strong opponent there. But the native of Hamburg beat the local hero in the round of the last eight, as did Austria's ace Dominic Thiem in the semifinals and the up-and-coming Italian Matteo Berrettini in the final. Three top ten opponents eliminated on the home straight - it was not a game of chance, not a cheap draw that allowed Zverev to win again at a Masters festival for the first time in three years. But his class, the exploitation of the potential he has. This year, noted old master Boris Becker, Zverev could absolutely take the next step and “win a Grand Slam title.” But where? Already in Paris?
In any case, it was worth taking a look at Zverev and his colleagues in the so-called NextGen, the upcoming tennis generation, this spring. Because even if the Russians Daniil Medvedev (Australian Open finalist 2021 and ATP world champion) or Andrey Rublev are hyped, the media and fans may also rave about the creativity and improvisation of a man like Stefanos Tsitsipas (Greece) - Zverev is with them By far the most successful players of the U25 faction in the global traveling circus. With the Masters coup in Madrid he now has 15 titles, followed by Medvedev (10) and Rublev (8) at a significant distance. Among the active players of all ages, Zverev now has the most Masters titles after the superstars Djokovic, Nadal, Federer and Murray, four in number. What he still lacks for temporary happiness, to satisfy his own ambition, is a Grand Slam title .
Zverev has now ticked the US Open 2020
Zverev, who got into professional tennis at a very young age, now has some experience in major competitions - those performance fairs that make a decisive assessment of the value and importance of a professional player. In the best of five mode, the hamburger learned better to manage his strength and energies without falling into muddle. Recently, he was not always there, but more and more often when it came to the all-important phase of a Grand Slam: In New York, in the memorable 2020 final against buddy Dominic Thiem, he was even ahead with 2-0 sets also in the fifth and last movement all advantages before he lost the drama. "A thousand times" he had to think of this game afterwards, of the "few points that were just missing," says Zverev, "but it is no longer in my bones."
In Paris, Zverev has so far felt most emphatically what happens if you lose too much substance in the first few laps. In 2018, when he traveled to the French Open with a lot of self-confidence and the recommendation of a Masters victory in Madrid, he toiled over five sets in rounds two to four before he was outclassed by Thiem in the quarter-finals. "I was completely flat, without power," recalls Zverev, "I knew: I can never win here." In 2019 he failed again in the quarter-finals, but against world number one Djokovic there was nothing to be gained in decent shape.
Zverev also has to hope for a little luck with the allocation of opponents. Not too early to meet Nadal or Djokovic. But sooner or later he will have to face the series winners of the Grand Slam in order to win the “really big thing”, as he himself says. And he adds: “I feel ready for this moment. I'm going in there with determination and courage. "
Click here for the men's tableau
French Open 2021: All information, players, TV, draw, prize money, favorites