ATP Masters Madrid: Alexander Zverev defies Dominic Thiem, the wind and the US Open demons
Alexander Zverev qualified for the final of the ATP Masters 1000 tournament in Madrid with a sovereign two-set success over Dominic Thiem. But in the semifinals, the German not only had to defy his opponent.
by Nikolaus Fink
last edit: May 08, 2021, 07:05 pm
It was before the Australian Open of this year that Alexander Zverev declared that he was still thinking "every day" of the US Open final defeat against Dominic Thiem. No wonder, after all, the native of Hamburg in the Big Apple only missed the achievement of his lifelong dream by a hair's breadth, Thiem prevailed in the tie-break of the fifth set on September 13 of the previous year.
Almost nine months later, Zverev and the Lichtenwörther were supposed to meet again on the tour for the first time since this epic final, but this time it was the German who should have the better end for himself. Thanks to another impressive performance - Zverev had already defeated clay court king Rafael Nadal in the quarter-finals - the 24-year-old won the final ticket 6: 3 and 6: 4.
Zverev draws his lessons
In the second set there was a brief smell of a comeback for the Austrian when he played two games in a row and reduced it to 3: 4. But unlike in New York, where Zverev had lost a break lead in both the third and fifth round, this time he stayed cool and easily served the game home.
Zverev was able to successfully drive the US Open demons out of his head - even though the thoughts of the final in the Big Apple would still crop up every day, as he confirmed in an interview with Sky: "It's not always bad things. I was in a Grand Slam final anyway. We played one of the best Grand Slam finals of all time and that will always be remembered. That motivates me somewhere to be even better. "
Zverev mentally at 100 percent
It is this impressive attitude of the world number sixth that did not let him break after the bitter defeat at the US Open. In any case, Zverev's head seems to be right at the moment, because the difficult circumstances in the Caja Magica did not hinder him on this Saturday afternoon: "Today it was extremely windy and therefore not easy to play from the baseline. I still had to do the best make of it. I'm not an incredible wind player, but I'm glad I took my chances and won the match. "
Not least because of his mental top condition, Zverev will also go into the game as a favorite in the final. The 24-year-old has to deal with Matteo Berrettini or Casper Ruud on Sunday from 6:30 p.m. "I'm definitely looking forward to playing another big final. I hope that this time I can steer it in my direction," said the German, full of anticipation.
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