Alexander Zverev's serve - back from vacation
Four match wins in Shanghai, getting closer to qualifying for the ATP final - last week went very well for Alexander Zverev. One reason for this: the premium of the German number one.
by tennisnet.com
last edit: Oct 14, 2019, 07:40 am
In the final of the ATP Masters 1000 tournament in Shanghai against Daniil Medvedev, not much worked for Alexander Zverev, and the first serve only reached 65 percent. And with exactly the same odds, Zverev also won points. Seven aces faced three double faults at the end of 4: 6 and 1: 6. A yield that the native of Hamburg would have loved to take at any time in the summer of 2019. However: The timing in the final of Shanghai left a lot to be desired - two of the three double faults were made by Zverev at 4: 5, 30:30, making the first set almost without a fight.
No comparison to Cincinnati, however, where Alexander Zverev traditionally has big problems. Rarely were they more obvious than this year in the game against Miomir Kecmanovic: Zverev gave his opponent 20 double points via double faults. The Serb couldn't help but accept this friendly offer and bowle the German number one out of the competition. After Shanghai at the latest, however, it can be said that Alexander Zverev's serve is back.
Zverev in Shanghai with impressive premium
Already in the first three rounds at the US Open it seemed that Zverev had caught himself. Before the last Grand Slam tournament of the year, the team around him had paid more attention to training the service. Especially with regard to the movement of the back leg, which does not have a solid footing when Zverev's impact movement. When going out against Diego Schwartzman, 17 double errors were noted in the final balance. Then came the Laver Cup. And with the appearances in Geneva also the self-confidence in your own service. Already in Beijing the relationship between aces and double faults was consistently positive, in Shanghai then Alexander Zverev showed himself again, who was untouchable at last year's ATP Finals against Roger Federer and in the final against Novak Djokovic.
The figures from Shanghai finally confirmed the turnaround: 21: 3 the ratio between aces and double faults at the start against Jeremy Chardy, 17: 7 still against Andrey Rublev. Then the nerve-racking performance against Roger Federer with 17 aces and only one double mistake. And also in the semifinals Zverev had an 11: 1 against Matteo Berrettini in these statistics.
Alexander Zverev can again rely on his most powerful weapon. However, this will be put through a new stress test at the ATP Tour 500 tournament in Basel in just a few days.