He was looking for an excuse after his defeat: Jannik Sinner criticizes Alexander Zverev

Jannik Sinner defeated Alexander Zverev in the fourth round of this year’s Roland Garros. Sinner’s triumph over Zverev was the highlight of his blockbuster run at France. The German entered the Roland Garros on the back of reaching his first Grand Slam final in New York.

But the 19-year old ended the German’s campaign after beating him 3-6, 3-6, 6-4, 3-6. Sinner’s dream run at the Opens was ended by the eventual champion Rafael Nadal in the quarterfinals.

Speaking to Corriere, Sinner shared his views on the post-match comments made by Zverev about their encounter.

“I respect him a lot because he’s won more than me, he’s got more experience on the circuit, and he’s a great player,” Sinner said. After his defeat to Sinner, Zverev claimed that he was not in the best health, many fearing that he has contracted the Coronavirus. But the Italian saw things differently.

Sinner continued to say, “However, I do not respect his statements after his defeat to me at Roland Garros. He contradicted himself a lot.”

He went on to dispute Zverev’s health claim saying, “He said he had a fever, but in the third and fourth sets, he ran more than me.”

Sinner also claimed that Zverev was looking for a reason to justify his upset loss, “It seems to me that he was looking for an excuse after his defeat. Federer or Nadal, for example, would never have said such things.”

Sinner received a lot of praises for his performance at the Roland Garros, with many tipping him to be the ‘future of tennis’.