French Open 2020: Duel of the new generation - Zverev meets shooting star Sinner
Alexander Zverev meets super talent Jannik Sinner in the round of 16 of the French Open ( from 12.30 p.m. in our live ticker ). It is the first match between the hamburger and the South Tyrolean.
by SID
last edit: Oct 04, 2020, 07:59 am
At the beginning of the year, Alexander Zverev snatched the South Tyrolean Jannik Sinner. "That was in Brisbane," the man from Hamburg recalled in Paris. At that time, at the ATP Cup, Zverev was still in a sporting crisis. "We played two and a half, three hours and I think he won in training," reported Zverev: "But my grandma could have won against me."
After the ATP Cup came the Australian Open. Semifinals. Then came the US Open after the long corona break. Final. There is no longer any trace of a crisis at Zverev. And now the German top player and the huge talent Sinner see each other again at the French Open. In the round of 16. Both professionals are pumped full of confidence.
Zverev on Sinner: "As far as tennis is concerned, he's absolutely great"
"At his age I was where he is now," said Zverev. He has great respect for Sinner, who made it to the round of 16 on the red ashes of Paris in the style of Rafael Nadal or Dominic Thiem. Without loss of sentences. "Physically he has to improve," said Zverev: "But when it comes to tennis, he's absolutely great."
It will be the first tour match of the two opponents who could be among the top for years. Zverev has already proven that, only the very big coup of a Grand Slam victory is still missing. Sinner first has to prove his consistency, he is currently 75th in the world rankings with an upward trend, undisputedly full of talent. "He's someone who's more and more in the foreground here, he has a lot of power," said Zverev after his 6: 1, 7: 5, 6: 3 third round success against Sinner's compatriot Marco Cecchinato: "But there is for me no need to be nervous after my performance. "
Sinner: "I still have a lot to learn"
Zverev has more experience than Sinner, especially with majors. "I still have so much to learn about Grand Slam tournaments," admitted the Italian after his 6: 3, 7: 5, 7: 5 against Argentine Federico Coria. If Zverev succeeds in getting Sinner to ponder, he has a good chance.
This project could work. Zverev seems enormously focused these days, mentally stable, he also finds ways out of difficult game phases. The big question is whether he will feel the strain of the past few weeks at some point, whether his strength is decreasing. After the long tournament in New York and now several weeks in the tennis bubbles of this world, that would not be entirely surprising.
The fact that he turned up the gear against Cecchinato and finished in just 1:47 hours certainly plays into his cards. The aim was to save grains in order to run at full speed in the round of 16 from the start.
rg2020