Untitled to Paris: Tired Zverev is still aiming for the big hit
The wait for the first tournament win in 2022 continues. Exhausted but with big goals,Alexander Zverev travels to the French Open.
by SID
last edit: May 15, 2022, 09:04 pm
In the first set, Alexander Zverev managed almost everything against Stefanos Tsitsipas. Between two strong rallies, the Hamburg player even had an eye for a butterfly that lived dangerously on the red ash in the face of crashing shots. Zverev quickly put the butterfly on his racket and brought it to safety in a flower box to applause. It was a moment of great lightness and at the same time very fragile - just like Zverev's game.
"I'm not a machine," said the visibly exhausted tennis Olympic champion after the 6: 4, 3: 6, 3: 6 in the semifinals in Rome. "Quite tired" he was, emphasized Zverev. Not for the first time. Nine matches in eleven days - at the Masters in Madrid last week, partly at night, in Rome now mainly at hot midday - have taken their toll on the 25-year-old.
The yield: All in all, good, but not good enough for the demands of a world number three who strives for the highest. In 2022, Alexander Zverev will still be without any title.
41 unforced errors against Tsitsipas
He has to work hard for his wins, even in the first rounds of Rome he struggled as a favourite. Against Tsitsipas, whom he had also beaten on sand for the first time last week in Madrid in the semi-finals, the Hamburger made a total of 41 unforced errors on Saturday, his own serve dropped significantly after winning the first round.
"You have to be fresh against Tsitsipas to win," summed up Zverev. In the end he wasn't, which is why the duel with the Greek is now 4:8.
Zverev in Paris from Wednesday
If you want to look at it positively: By missing the final in the Foro Italico, Zverev gained another day to regenerate. "Recover freshness" is high on his agenda. From Wednesday he will then train in Paris at the Roland Garros facility for the highlight of the clay court season that begins next Sunday.
"Paris is the tournament you look at. I want to show my best performance there," said Zverev. Last year he got as far as he'd ever gotten into the semi-finals. Then came Tsitsipas.
Here the single tableau in Rome
rommap