Andy Roddick Rushes to French Open Champion Alexander Zverev’s Defense After Criticisms Due to “Things That Have Happened Off the Court”

Even though Alexander Zverev is the newest Grand Slam champion and is showered with a lot of praise, not everyone in the tennis world is celebrating his win due to, as per Andy Roddick, things that happened off the court. The American ace thinks the tennis world should compartmentalize his on-court and off-court life.

Zverev defeated Flavio Cobolli in a thrilling French Open final, winning his career’s first Grand Slam title after three unsuccessful finals. Sascha has found himself on the receiving end of criticism for his conduct on the court as well as his controversial statements.

After defeating Jakub Mensik in the semifinals, Zverev again faced criticism for his remark that athletes don’t have anything in their brains. Also, he was snubbed by the French daily L’Equipe, which did not feature him on its front page (for the first time in 20 years, a French Open champion did not make it to the front cover).

L’Equipe had asked Zverev about his domestic violence charges at the press conference after his final win. Zverev also often made global headlines for various reasons. But Roddick said Zverev, who previously was called the best player ever to never win a Major, deserves this success.

Look, you might not be a Sascha fan for certain reasons or because of things that have happened off the court, but there have been people on various podcasts talking about him as if he isn’t a great player. And that bothers me. We’re talking about 24 singles titles. He’s played in the ATP Finals every year he hasn’t been injured for the last nine years. There aren’t many people who have played in the ATP Finals eight times and won them twice.

Andy Roddick said on his Served podcast

Roddick also asked the critics to stop comparing the World No.3 with Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz, both of whom dominated in the Majors since the 2024 Australian Open until this French Open.

Because Carlos and Jannik are so good, I don’t want us to get to the point of treating anyone who isn’t them like garbage. That’s ridiculous. A lot of the animosity we hear toward Zverev’s tennis comes from what people think or feel about him off the court. Honestly, I don’t know Sascha; I’ve seen him a couple of times in passing, and that doesn’t influence my opinion of his tennis. It shouldn’t. We have to be able to separate the two, compartmentalize them, and be objective.

Andy Roddick added

Alcaraz withdrew from the tournament due to his wrist injury and will also be skipping Wimbledon. Four-time Major champion Sinner lost in the second round.

Alexander Zverev withdraws from the Stuttgart Open

After his semifinal win over Jakub Mensik at the Stuttgart Open, it was confirmed that Alexander Zverev had pulled out of the Stuttgart Open. He reached the final of the tournament last year but lost the match to Taylor Fritz.

Zverev was scheduled to start his campaign for the grass swing in the Stuttgart tournament, the main draw of which started on June 8. Flavio Cobolli was also scheduled to play in the ATP 250 tournament in the German city, and he withdrew as well.

Ben Shelton, who suffered a second-round upset at the French Open, will be competing in the first set. Both Zverev and Cobolli have yet to win a title on grass.

Wimbledon is the only Major where the 29-year-old has never progressed to the quarterfinal. Cobolli made the quarterfinal last year, losing in four sets to Novak Djokovic.

Zverev, the winner of 25 singles titles, has played three finals on grass. Last year at Wimbledon, he suffered an opening-round exit.

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