Olympia 2020: Alexander Zverev between joy and frustration
After losing in doubles with Jan-Lennard Struff , Alexander Zverev still has a medal chance in Tokyo - and a serve that he can rely on.
by SID
last edit: Jul 28, 2021, 03:03 pm
At the end of a long, unbearably humid tennis day, the first chance was gone and Alexander Zverev was pretty well served. "I had the dream of winning two medals for Germany, I hope that I can now pack it in a competition," said Zverev after the Olympics in doubles with Jan-Lennard Struff. He now has to "get the disappointment out" in order to continue his individual run on Thursday, which has led him to the quarter-finals.
And that with "extraordinary" numbers, as national coach Michael Kohlmann said appreciatively after Zverevs 6: 4, 7: 6 (7: 5) about Nikolos Bassilashvili from Georgia. Zverev beat eleven aces in the stifling heat, in seven (!) Service games in a row, he did not give up a single point. Hardly once did he have to go over the second serve. All of this is an expression of the medal shape at the Hamburger, who had often had problems with his service in the past.
In Tokyo he can rely on it so far, but the defeat with "Struffi, one of the nicest guys in the world", as Zverev described his double partner, ruined his mood. In the 3: 6, 6: 7 (4: 7) against the Americans Austin Krajicek / Tennys Sandgren, the duo did not call up their best performance, "that hurts a lot," Admitted Struff: The Olympic Games, that was clearly visible , are an affair of the heart for him and not an annoying mandatory appointment.
Zverev with a favorable starting position
After his cancellation for Rio 2016, Zverev has also made friends with the Olympic tennis tournament, he enjoyed living in the village with his colleagues, of whom only one is left after Thursday: Kevin Krawietz surprised in mixed at Laura Siegemund's side the favored Americans Rajeev Ram / Bethanie Mattek-Sands (6: 4, 5: 7, 10: 8). Dominik Koepfer also has to make his way home with Struff: He could not use his chances against the Spaniard Pablo Carreno Busta in the individual round of 16 (6: 7, 3: 6).
That shouldn't happen to Zverev (24), at least not individually. There the opportunity is good, in the quarter-finals against the Frenchman Jeremy Chardy on Thursday afternoon German time he is the clear favorite, especially when the serve comes back so exceptionally well. If you win, the double frustration should be quickly forgotten.
But he also has to: Because then the medal games wait and almost certainly the ultimate challenge in the semifinals. Novak Djokovic , the "insatiable" one, who dumped Spaniard David Fokina Davidovich 6: 3, 6: 1 on Wednesday and competed in mixed games despite the temperatures and - of course - won. Zverev knows that he can not dwell too long with such opponents with a defeat, even if it hurts so much.