“Alexander Zverev needs to play the match of his life” Alex Corretja and Tim Henman discuss the German’s chances against Rafael Nadal in the French Open semis
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Alexander Zverev, Alex Corretja, Tim Henman
World No. 3 Alexander Zverev and World No. 5 Rafael Nadal will be locking horns in the semi-finals of the 2022 French Open in what will be the second Grand Slam and 10th career meeting between the two. Nadal is a 13-time champion at the Roland Garros while Zverev has reached just one Grand Slam final, the 2020 US Open.
With a high-stake match approaching Zverev in what will be the toughest test for him given that Nadal has lost just 3 matches in the past 17 French Open appearances while winning 110 matches in the same time to deservedly make the French Open his favourite hunting ground and second home as he has played only three 5-setters at the major of which he has won all and the third 5-setter was played this year in the fourth round against Felix Auger-Aliassime.
“Against Alcaraz, there was so much talk about him during the clay-court season – rightly so – and him [Alcaraz] going on to win Roland-Garros, that I think Zverev was slightly offended by that, he was saying ‘hang on, don’t forget about me. I’ve won plenty of big titles and I’ve been in the final of a Slam’. He went out there and played brilliantly, so I think the aggressive mindset is important and he’s got to have that belief against Rafa. It’s the toughest task in tennis to beat Rafa at Roland-Garros in a five-setter.
“But I think with his big game if he can serve at a high percentage and because of his height, he is able to get on top of the ball [it’s possible]. But let’s be honest, he’s got to play the match of his life. It’s not as if Rafa’s struggling for confidence either with the wins he’s had over his whole career here, but the way he came back against Auger-Aliassime, and he played over four hours against Djokovic. It’s just an awesome match-up, but there’s no doubt in my mind that Rafa’s going to be the favourite,” said former British Pro Tim Henman speaking on Eurosport.
“Alexander Zverev knows exactly how he should play”: Alex Corretja
Joining Henman was former World No. 2 and 2-time French Open runner-up Alex Corretja who looked to back Zverev to do the impossible against Nadal. Although he did pick a clear favourite, his comments indicated that he sees Sascha making things difficult against Rafa who is seeking his 14th title at the Grand Slam.
“It should be huge [the confidence gained from beating Alcaraz] because he played very well and he beat someone who only lost one match across the whole clay-court season and it was the first time he beat a top-10 player at a Slam, so it should give him a feeling that he can do it again.
“Also against Rafa, in a way, tactically, Sascha knows exactly how he should play. Even if he goes onto court knowing it will be very difficult he should think he can do it. The mindset before the semi-finals is ‘why can’t I beat Rafa on clay? Why can’t I do it?’ So I think Sascha will be very dangerous,” said Corretja.
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