Wimbledon: Alexander Zverev - The world of the world champion in ruins
In addition to the problems with (ex) manager Patricio Apey, Alexander Zverev also has to moderate tensions within his team.
by Jörg Allmeroth
last edit: Jul 02, 2019, 10:47 am
By Jörg Allmeroth from London
The dark blue limousines of the shuttle service were already waiting with the engine running on Monday evening to transport Alexander Zverev and his tennis team away from the green tennis kingdom of Wimbledon. But Zverev somehow wanted to get rid of one last wish at the entrance to the All England Lawn Tennis Club, he said it in a husky voice: "It would be nice," said the kinked first-round loser Zverev. "Just being able to play tennis again."
The sad reality, however, looks very different: Seven months after his brilliant triumph at the ATP World Cup, Zverev's world is in ruins. Nothing has remained of the splendor of this outstanding cup win, instead a bitter battle for power, money and influence is raging behind the scenes of the tennis company Zverev. Zverev's longtime manager Patricio Apey, a crafty trader, is not the only problem. But also the small war between Zverev's father Alexander and the super coach Ivan Lendl, who was engaged in the last summer.
Alexander Zverev sr. was missing for the first time in a major
When his son lost in the opening round on the famous Church Road, against Czech qualifier Jiri Vesely, Daddy Zverev was not there, for the first time he was missing from a Grand Slam tournament. Zverev junior explained the absence by saying that his father needed rest for health reasons, and that he was recovering from gardening at home in Hamburg. But Zverev's father has been grumbling for a while about the consultant and "head coach" for a while, his peer Ivan Lendl.
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Zverev senior sees himself offside, in the second row - always when Lendl joins the team. Apparently the animosities were so strong that Papa Zverev and Lendl could hardly stand together at tournaments. The fact that Lendl allegedly only joined the Zverev team just before Wimbledon, at the competition in Stuttgart, because of a pollen allergy and was not sighted in the weeks of the clay court season, appears in a completely different light. "Sascha's father set up the whole tennis project and led two sons to the top of the world, including older brother Mischa," says a family confidant, "now he feels as if he is offside. Of course, there is an umbilical cord process in progress. ”
Disagreement with manager Patricio Apey
The complications between Lendl and father Zverev alone would have been enough to throw a still young and inexperienced professional off the track. But at the latest since the ATP World Cup won in London's O2 arena last November, there was also the rift with manager Patricio Apey. Zverev is now on trial with him, allies have become enemies. "It's hard to believe. But this is an open war that is going on there, "says an insider," there is fighting with hard bandages. "
# BETATHOMEWI #
Obviously, the fierce argument started right after winning the ATP World Cup when the Zverev family complained about Apey's work, especially that the large, lucrative sponsorship contracts failed to materialize. They wanted to end the business relationship, presumably other partners on the market lured with offers. But Apey has a contract with Zverev, which is said to be valid until 2023. What Zverev hopes from going to the courts remains unclear. In London, he told British reporters that due to judge overload, a court hearing could not be scheduled until late 2020.
Self-confidence below zero
When Zverev spoke about Apey in the press conference after the shocking end, he said literally: “It is strange what is going on. There is news again, you cannot imagine that. ”The last two days before the first assignment were“ very hard ”, the concentration on tennis was hardly possible at times. Did Apey want to bring his long-standing client to his knees before Wimbledon with a tough demand for money, to persuade him to end the legal skirmishes? Cynically speaking, it would have been the ideal time for Apey. The Chilean allegedly requires a high single-digit million sum to complete the separation.
Zverev was finally close to tears when he said the last words on the subject: "It hurts me, that was a person who was close to my life. I thought we were friends. I thought we were tight. Not just on the job. ”It looks like Zverev is also experiencing a crash course in adulthood - with the simple lesson that in the rock-hard traveling circus is not the smallest place for sentimentalities. "My self-confidence is just below zero," said Zverev, "all champions go through a process like this." But getting strength from it is initially no more than hope.