Alexander Zverev has played a great season, in which he also won the Masters 1000 in Rome during the spring. Despite achieving outstanding results for most players, including a French Open final, fans and professionals expected more from him this year. With Rafael Nadal now in decline and the physiological decline of Novak Djokovic, many think this season would have been the right one to see Sascha triumph in a Major. The German champion has had several chances since January, having stopped in the semifinals at the Australian Open and having wasted a two-set advantage against Carlos Alcaraz in the final of the Roland Garros.
Zverev was affected by a physical problem at the Wimbledon Championships, while at the US Open he failed to win a golden opportunity. Alexander had become the top favorite for the win in New York behind Jannik Sinner after the premature eliminations of Alcaraz and Djokovic, but he could not handle the pressure well and gave up to Taylor Fritz in the quarterfinals playing a horrible match from start to finish.
The last month was not easy for the sample from Hamburg, who was diagnosed with pneumonia and has not fully recovered. Zverev – who is in the middle of a fight with Alcaraz for second place in the ATP ranking – defeated Tallon Griekspoor in the second round at the Paris-Bercy Masters 1000.
Sascha on Paris-Bercy’s courts
The German is very good in these fast conditions and has a chance to make a great result both at the last Masters 1000 of the season and at the Nitto ATP Finals in Turin. His next opponent in the French capital will be the local idol Arthur Fils, who is playing a very good tennis and is very dangerous on these courts.
During the press conference after his debut, Sascha opened up on Paris-Bercy’s courts: “Very fast court. I think one of the fastest courts I’ve ever played on. I had to find my rhythm in the beginning but happy to come through in the end. Once I find my rhythm I love fast courts because it fits my game.”
Alexander is a really very fearsome player on this surface and could finish the season by winning a great title. Zverev has already shown he can shine in Turin, having won the Nitto ATP Finals there in 2021 thanks to his powerful servant. According to former coach of Roger Federer Ivan Ljubicic, the German is the main opponent of Sinner in the ATP Finals.
Sinner is the dark horse in Turin,” revealed Roger Federer’s former coach. “Also because Alcaraz still has to convince me on indoor courts. He has a very high level on hard court, but even in Turin last year, he struggled a lot on indoor courts, especially from a mental perspective. Let’s see if that changes this year. If we want to look for someone closer to Jannik, I would say Zverev” – he added.
The consequences of pneumonia
A few days ago, Sascha said he had not yet fully recovered from the pneumonia that hit him after the Laver Cup. The runner-up at the 2024 French Open had to skip the ATP 500 in Beijing, while he played the Shanghai Masters 1000 and the ATP 500 in Vienna despite not being in the best conditions. In Shanghai he was defeated by David Goffin, while in Austria he had to surrender to a great Lorenzo Musetti in the quarterfinals.
“I have an inflammation in my lung. It’s going to take about two, three months to be completely gone,” he explained. “Why I pulled out of Beijing was because I was quite sick. I had quite a high fever during the Laver Cup and after the Laver Cup. I ended up in hospital. I didn’t feel great and just didn’t have the energy to play. I was on antibiotics for a week.
I still have a feeling of maybe being a bit more tired than I’m used to, but it’s either I’m going to take the whole season off now or I’m going to play the way I can play. It’s nothing that will delay the recovery or will make it worse if I play, that’s what the doctor said, and that’s why I’m here, and I’m happy to give my 100 per cent of what I have” – Alexander concluded.
2025 will be a very important year for the Masters 1000 champion in Rome, who will have to prove that he is finally ready to win a Grand Slam title. Almost no one expected that in 2024 Sascha had not won a Major title and the rise of new young talents imposes a certain haste.