French Open: Alexander Zverev mourns the start of deep sleep after the semi-final
Overslept at the start and not exploited the momentum in the end: Alexander Zverev was very disappointed after his exit in the semifinals of the French Open.
by Jörg Allmeroth
last edit: Jun 12, 2021, 06:27 am
Alexander Zverev will probably think about the first game of the fifth set for a long time. The game that probably cost him the leap to the French Open final - on a day of roller coaster turbulence, in a drama of crazy twists and turns on Paris' Red Square. At first Zverev looked like the sure loser in the semi-final duel with his generation colleague Stefanos Tsitsipas, then, after a spectacularly compensated 0-2 set deficit, like the potential, presumed winner. But then this first game came in the fifth set, Zverev led 40-0, had three breakballs to a 1-0 lead against a counted opponent. The opportunities came, but then all of them went away.
Zverev: "If you start like this, it will be extremely difficult"
And the missed opportunities ushered in the final turnaround in the Roland Garros crime thriller. Zverev ran after Tsitsipas, he lost his serve to 1: 3, and when after three hours and 40 minutes it was settled on the Center Court, it was not only Zverev's bitter 3: 6, 3: 6, 6: 4, 6: 4, 3-6 defeat in the sand, but also continued his dark Grand Slam series against major tennis opponents.
Zverev's tenth major game against a top ten rival ended like everyone else before - with a defeat, with disappointment and anger. Above all, the man from Hamburg mourned his deep sleep start: “If you start a match like this, it will be extremely difficult. Then it's your own fault if you lose. "It was a mixture of nervousness and tension:" The first two sentences were simply shit. "
For Zverev it was also the first failure in a French Open match over five sets, before he had won all marathon duels, but against not as well-known and strong competitors as Tsitsipas. The Greek now had the Herculean task of knocking one of the two tennis giants off the stick - either clay court king Rafael Nadal, the 13-time tournament winner, or the lonely world number one Novak Djokovic. “As a child, my dream was always to play in Roland Garros. Now I'm in the final. It's unbelievable, ”said Tsitsipas, who was moved to tears, in a flash interview on Center Court.
Boris Becker: "A lot of nervousness"
Zverev would have been the first German since Michael Stich to move into the Paris Cup match in 1996. Not much was missing, but Tsitsipas was ultimately the deserved winner in a game that got going late, actually only really in the excitement of the fifth set - with two exhausted but passionately fighting gladiators who once again did everything for victory gifts.
Zverev and Tsitsipas already had some glamorous moments, but also bitter setbacks behind them. The German had completely overslept the start of the most important game of the season, in the two opening sets he looked dull, haphazard and at times confused. Tsitsipas lost control after the clear lead, looked nervous and pale against the suddenly reviving Zverev. “Both of them don't play at the highest level at the same time. There is a lot of nervousness in the game, ”said TV expert Boris Becker.
#VIDEO#
Tsitsipas grabs in the fifth sentence
The 22-year-old showed why Tsitsipas was the player with the most wins and the strongest record in the special discipline sand (even before Nadal) this year when he was just beginning to be written off. Tsitsipas fended off the three breakballs at the beginning of the fifth set not with luck or chance, but with a gripping attitude, with a lot of self-confidence and guts. And then he used the first opportunities himself to attack Zverev effectively, to wrest the power of directing from him. Even four match balls awarded in a 5-2 lead, which Zverev defended in an excellent way, did not bring Tsitsipas off balance.
In the last service game to 6: 3, the Greek showed no nakedness and ensured his greatest success so far - the entry into the first Grand Slam final of his career. Tsitsipas is now the youngest Grand Slam finalist since Andy Murray in 2011 at the Australian Open. But the most beautiful and equally difficult task is still waiting for the fifth in the world rankings, the appearance in the final against Nadal or Djokovic. "I will try to make the possibly impossible possible," said Tsitsipas. By the way, there can be a reunion with Zverev next week: Then both players will start at the ATP tournament in Halle.
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