Alexander Zverev Hopes To “Be Able to Reach” the Level of Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner

Alexander Zverev is in the second round of the Terra Wortmann Open after beating American Marcos Giron in straight sets.

Alexander Zverev Hopes To “Be Able to Reach” the Level of Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner

Alexander Zverev, Jannik Sinner, Carlos Alcaraz (Image via X)

Alexander Zverev has been heavily criticized for his performance this season, despite already winning a title. The German star has been overlooked due to the dominance of Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner in the men’s circuit, especially due to faltering when it comes to Majors. Nevertheless, he aims to reach their level and compete with them.

Zverev was expected to overtake Sinner in the World No.1 after the Italian was suspended for three months for testing positive twice for the banned substance clostebol. The 28-year-old struggled to take advantage of the Italian star’s absence, managing to reach only one final. That one final he reached was at the Munich Open, where he defeated Ben Shelton in straight sets.

However, after the title win, he still struggled on the court, losing to Francisco Cerundolo in the round of 16 of the Madrid Open. He then fell to Lorenzo Musetti in the quarter-finals of the Italian Open despite being the defending champion. After that, he lost his World No.2 position to Alcaraz.

At the Roland Garros, he managed to reach the quarter-finals before losing to 38-year-old Novak Djokovic in four sets. The 28-year-old is also yet to add a Grand Slam to his resume, though he’s regarded as one of the most talented players of his generation and has won 24 titles.

He has been heavily criticized for not always proving why he’s ranked in the top 3 of the ATP. More recently, he arrived a bit late for the Terra Wortmann Open after his runners-up finish at the Stuttgart Open. During his press conference, he sarcastically said that people are surprised that he still wins matches, while adding that he aims to reach the level of Alcaraz and Sinner:

I know that now everyone is incredibly surprised that I win matches, but I am still number 3 in the world and I am the third best player of the year, having a very bad year, as people seem to think. Obviously, Jannik and Carlos are ahead of me deservedly, but I am the first one behind. Now I have to make sure to shorten the distance to be able to reach them.

Zverev reached the final of the Stuttgart Open for the first time in his career but lost the title to Taylor Fritz in straight sets. It was his fifth consecutive loss against the American star. He will now shift his focus to the Terra Wortmann Open, where he will have to compete for the title with World No.1 Sinner.

Alexander Zverev into the second round of the Terra Wortmann Open

Alexander Zverev opened his account at the Terra Wortmann Open with a confident display to beat American Marcos Giron. Just days after reaching the Stuttgart Open, the German star and home favorite continued with his form, winning 6-2, 6-1 in an hour and 19 minutes. He extended his record at the event to 19-8.

Alexander Zverev (via X/ATP)
Alexander Zverev (via X/ATP)

He’s chasing for first Halle Open title after reaching the final in 2016 and 2017 and then making back-to-back semi-final appearances in 2023 and 2024. After the win against Giron, he stated that he’s looking forward to a good run at the tournament:

It was a great match from me. I thought it was quite high level. Maybe he wanted to play a bit better than he did, but I felt like I didn’t let him play that well, which was important for me. A good start to the tournament and I’m looking forward to tomorrow.

Zverev has now improved his head-to-head record against Giron to 4-0. He will face Lorenzo Sonego in the second round and leads the Italian star with the same scoreline in their head-to-head record. He faced Sonego at the tournament last year and defeated him in straight sets, he will hope to repeat the win when they meet.

Also Read: Carlos Alcaraz Scared of Hateful Messages and Vowed Never to Check Social Media After Early Exits