Alexander Zverev Reveals How Fatherhood and Roger Federer Helped Him Control Anger During Matches

First seed Alexander Zverev will be facing Karen Khachanov to secure a berth in the Canadian Open final.

Alexander Zverev Reveals How Fatherhood and Roger Federer Helped Him Control Anger During Matches

Roger Federer, Alexander Zverev (Image via X/We Are Tennis France, The Tennis Letter)

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Alexander Zverev is in Toronto to end his title drought in the Masters 1000 category. He last won a title in this category at the 2024 Paris Masters.

Zverev has secured a spot in the semifinal of the Canadian Open for the second time in his career, scheduling the match against Karen Khachanov, against whom he holds a 5-2 head-to-head lead and last met in the third round of the 2024 Cincinnati Masters.

In the quarterfinals, Zverev survived a scare against defending champion Alexei Popyrin, following which, he was asked in the press conference about how he is able to control his anger during matches. Zverev has often made headlines due to his angry outbursts, racket smashing, and heated arguments with umpires.

Number one thing, I’ve said it before, but I’m a father now, so I want to be a good example there. Also, you know, I want to be remembered for my tennis. I want to be remembered for what I’ve achieved on the court, for what I’ve done on the tennis court.

Even during the quarterfinal clash with Popyrin, a heckler was troubling him. But right after winning the last point of the match, Zverev waved goodbye to the heckler before shaking hands with the Aussie.

It came with Roger [Federer] as well. Roger used to have outbursts like crazy, and then he changed; he became Roger Federer, he became this perfection that we all know him as now. But it wasn’t always that case. But, yeah, something in the mind clicked and decided to, yeah, to be different on the court.

Alexander Zverev added

It is worth noting that, Zverev has a four-year-old daughter, Mayla, with his ex-girlfriend Brenda Patea. She was born in 2021.

In Toronto, with his win over Popyrin, Zverev extended his head-to-head lead to 4-0. Zverev is a former champion in Toronto. Back in 2017, he beat Federer to win his second Masters 1000 trophy. Zverev has so far lifted seven Masters 1000 titles.

Alexander Zverev criticizes the two-week Master 1000 tournaments

The ATP has extended seven of the nine Masters 1000s to a 12-day tournament, with the Canadian Open and the Cincinnati Masters being the latest additions. The ATP has also made it mandatory for the players to feature in at least four ATP 500 events, including one after the US Open.

Alexander Zverev Canadian Open 2025
Alexander Zverev (Image via ATP)

At present, only the Monte Carlo Masters and the Paris Masters fall under the category of one-week Masters 1000s. While the governing bodies are always aiming to expand the already packed 11-month calendar, they are facing nothing but criticism from former and current players, including Alexander Zverev. He said on the Nothing Major podcast:

Now the ATP has made four mandatory 500 events for you to play. This used to be three, now it’s four. So, you kind of don’t really get under 20 events, except if you are pulling out of those big events. I’m not a fan of where this is going.

Zverev has so far lifted one title this season – the Munich Open by beating Ben Shelton. Apart from his home tournament, he also played the finals of the Australian Open and the Stuttgart Open but failed to beat Jannik Sinner and Taylor Fritz, respectively.

Before starting his campaign on the North American hard-court swing, Zverev suffered a heartbreaking first-round exit at Wimbledon, where Frenchman Arthur Rinderknech knocked him out in five sets. After the Canadian Open, Zverev will shift his focus toward the Cincinnati Masters, which he had won in 2021 by beating Andrey Rublev.

After Cincinnati, Zverev will be hoping to finally lift his career’s first Grand Slam title at the US Open. He is a former finalist at Flushing Meadows, reaching the stage in 2020, but he failed to overcome Dominic Thiem.

Also read: Alex de Minaur Opens Up About Feeling Mentally Burned Out Due to the Ever-Growing Demands of the Men’s Circuit