"Nobody plays as well as he does under pressure": Alexander Zverev pays Djokovic great respect
Alexander Zverev was once again impressed by his mental strength after the semi-final against Novak Djokovic.
by Jörg Allmeroth
last edit: Sep 11, 2021, 03:44 pm
At the very end of this memorable US Open evening, Alexander Zverev said that he was "looking forward to the final Sunday" as "very excited". He is a "sports fan" and he hopes "that history will then be written."
However, it will not be his story, the story of his own first Grand Slam triumph, the story of the first German Grand Slam success since the times of Boris Becker or Michael Stich. Zverev will only be able to watch as his semi-final conqueror Novak Djokovic will try his hand at the very last challenge on the way to the real Grand Slam in one calendar year, in the final against the Russian Daniil Medvedev. "He showed in the crucial moments why he is number 1 in the world," said Zverev after the bitter 6: 4, 2: 6, 4: 6, 6: 4, 2: 6 semi-final defeat against Djokovic in the Night show on the second Friday of the tournament, "Nobody in tennis plays as well under pressure as he does."
Djokovic: "Grand Slam tennis has three winning sets"
Two sets won in the Olympic semifinals six weeks ago were enough for Zverev to inflict the only bitter defeat this season on Djokovic and to continue his gold mission. Two sentences won in New York were only enough for widespread recognition and good words of praise, but nothing else. Djokovic, the master of the battles of attrition in the majors, was simply right with his combative words before the big duel. It was now “Grand Slam tennis, it was about three sets of wins”, and that was “another world”, Djokovic had explained - and as if the dramaturgy wanted to follow exactly this verdict, one relaxed over three hours and 33 minutes Center Court roller coaster ride, in which Djokovic once again had the staying power against one of his much younger rivals this season.
He has now won 27 games in the majors in a row, another victory is still missing for the Grand Slam march, which had long been considered impossible. “I will give everything in the final. I will leave my heart, my body, my soul out there, "said Djokovic," I will treat the game as if it were the last game of my career. "The end of this fabulous series also points to the beginning - because the one The 34-year-old Serb secured his first Grand Slam title of the season against Medvedev in January at the Australian Open.
Djokovic is "a wall that you won't be able to get through at some point"
Zverev later expressed a familiar feeling among his colleagues when he spoke of Djokovic as a "wall", "where you can no longer get through at some point." Especially not when the opponent's abrupt phases of weakness are the lurking, wide-awake world number one Make the task easier - as happened in the fifth sentence of the heated semifinal exchange of blows, when Zverev conceded two quick breaks and suddenly 0: 5 was in the red. “You can't afford that against Novak. The defeat was sealed, ”said Zverev, who managed a small comeback to make it 2: 5, but who then took the last and decisive break with his own service.
There was all the effort, the race to catch up to the 2: 2 set compensation, the intense fight that experienced its fascinating climax in the tenth game of the third act. When winning points from 15:40 to 30:40, defending against a set ball, Zverev needed a whopping 53 strokes to wrestle Djokovic, then both gladiators hung like boxers on the ropes in the 15th round of a heavyweight fight. In that sentence, Zverev had missed it well before these sensational moments to give the event the decisive twist in his favor. He let a total of three breakballs slip by against the Serbs, partly because he sometimes “didn't give enough gas”, as TV expert Boris Becker complained: “He was just too cautious, not determined enough. If he takes the lead with 2-1 sets, it might be a completely different game. "
Djokovic always has a solution
Djokovic has often got out of critical, distressed situations this season, in Paris, at the French Open, he turned 2-0 down in the round of 16 against the Italian Lorenzo Musetti and in the final against the Greek Stefanos Tsitsipas. In New York he got into trouble four times after losing the opening round, but was only moderately confused. “Over the years I have learned to deal with these problems. I know: I still have a solution, an answer, ”said the Belgrade man, who for the first time in the era of the Big Three can now overtake Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal.
A victory on Sunday could bring Djokovic the 21st Grand Slam title, Federer and Nadal, both injured and absent from the Big Apple, have 20 major trophies. "I have to ignore everything, I can and must only think about winning this game," said Djokovic, "but one thing is also clear: there will be a little stage fright beforehand."
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