Amidst Alexander Zverev’s recent trial controversies, college tennis coach charged with domestic battery against wife

NIU's former tennis coach Patrick Fisher's case triggers comparison to Alexander Zverev's ongoing criminal prcoeedings.

Amidst Alexander Zverev’s recent trial controversies, college tennis coach charged with domestic battery against wife

Patrick Fisher's mugshot and Alexander Zverev (Credits: Northernstar, WWOS)

The ugly side of the tennis world continues to dampen the spirits of tennis enthusiasts across the globe. With World No. 6 Alexander Zverev currently involved in a second domestic abuse case, the fans are massively divided on the subject.

Zverev’s earlier case was filed by his ex-girlfriend, Olga Sharypova. She had accused the former World No. 2 of having physically and verbally assaulted her on multiple occasions. A few instances were alleged to have happened at Tour hotels during the player’s participation. 

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Zverev was, however, not punished by the ATP after third-party investigations found insufficient evidence to support the allegations. A second case was filed by Brenda Patea, another ex-girlfriend of the German who is also the mother of his daughter. The case is yet to be concluded. 

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Amid this, on a lower level, another similar incident has taken place. Patrick Fisher, a former men’s tennis coach at Northern Illinois University (NIU), has been formally charged with domestic battery. The incident is reported to have occurred on October 3, 2023, when Fisher hit his wife multiple times. 

Fisher’s wife reported being hit in the back of her head by a shoe. After the initial altercation, she left the house to calm down. Upon returning, the couple were involved in another verbal spat when she claimed to have been punched in the head. 

Fisher no more part of NIU, Zverev continues to serve on ATP’s Players Advisory Council

Following the incident in October, Fisher officially resigned from the NIU in November 2023. He had been the coach of the tennis team since 2009 and led them to multiple titles during his reign.

ATP's Player Advisory Council (Credits: ATP Tour)
ATP’s Player Advisory Council (Credits: ATP Tour)

NIU did not make any comment on the incident. It will be purely speculative whether Fisher resigned on his terms or was made to by the NIU. But in any case, many could argue the NIU is more responsible than the ATP.

Zverev’s past did not stop the Tour from naming him as one of the members of the Players Advisory Council. The player also appeared in the Netflix series BreakPoint, for which the OTT platform was heavily criticized. 

The German Olympian has denied all the charges and continues to fight for his innocence. The second charge has been filed as a criminal case and could see Zverev being dragged to the court like Nick Kyrgios was made to.

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