As a comforter of the local hero: Zverev suddenly feels fan love

As the comforter of the local hero
Zverev suddenly feels fan love

By Jannik Schneider, Turin

Alexander Zverev only has one sentence to do athletically at the start of the ATP finals. Then he comforts his injured opponent and addresses warm words to the audience. The favorite of the masses is not always the best German tennis player, despite an outstanding season.

Two hours before the start of the match, Alexander Zverev must have felt like the fan favorite of the Italian crowd. Hundreds of Tifosi stood around training court number one, which is only 25 meters as the crow flies from the center court stands, and waited for the best German tennis player since Boris Becker. When the world number third entered the scene with brother Mischa behind a corner curtain, spirited cheers broke out. Zverev looked up in surprise, said hello to the crowd, put down his bag and then reeled off his 30-minute warm-up.

At 9 p.m. at the latest when Wimbledon finalist Matteo Berrettini entered the Center Court of the Pala Alpitour in Turin, the largest indoor hall in Italy, Zverev knew what the mix really looks like. Around 7,000 Tifosi made it clear who, in their opinion, should make the start of the ATP Finals victorious. Zverev will later say: “That was the original Davis Cup atmosphere that I miss a lot.”

In terms of sport, however, everything went exactly as no one in the hall had wanted. After a remarkable and sprawling long set (79 minutes), which Zverev just won 7: 6 (7), local hero Berrettini had to give up in tears after a painful injury to his abdominal muscles. Zverev hugged and comforted his opponent on the net and then found warm words for the Italian and the dejected audience, which gave the players appreciative applause.

The 24-year-old Zverev has already celebrated 18 tournament victories on the ATP tour – he achieved five alone in 2021. The Olympic victory in Tokyo, when he eliminated the industry leader Novak Djokovic in the semifinals, dominated the media. In the absence of the injured Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal, Zverev has established himself with great consistency as the third force in world tennis behind Djokovic and the US Open winner Daniil Medvedev. At the Grand Slams he failed twice shortly before the final. For Zverev it is already the fifth participation in a row in the year-end tournament of the best eight players. However, Zverev has not yet become the undisputed sporting hero. Too many minor and major problems have accompanied the native of Hamburg again and again outside of the tennis courts.

Zverev and the special Center Court speeches

Sunday evening showed impressively what Zverev has mastered like no other. On the one hand there are tennis skills consisting of hard, error-free baseline strokes and one of the best serves in the world. On the other hand, Zverev knows what great victories and bitter defeats feel like in large courts and usually finds the right tone in center court speeches.

“I already feel bad. I don’t even know how Matteo must feel now,” Zverev explained immediately after the match was over. Then the 24-year-old added, looking at the audience: “I hope you fans can wait another year for him. I sincerely wish that he wins this tournament once.” Then the German was said goodbye to warm applause.

On the other hand, Zverev is bursting with ambition during a tournament week. Hardly anyone is more professional in competition mode. After Berrettini’s assignment, for example, to the great astonishment of the Italian stewards, Zverev reappeared on Center Court less than half an hour later – with brother Mischa and physiotherapist Hugo Gravil at his side. Then they trained for another 20 minutes. He had adjusted to two sentences and wanted to do something for himself, said Mischa Zverev afterwards on request.

“I wanted to find my rhythm even more”

Alexander Zverev said at the press conference shortly before one in the night: “The Center Court is extremely much faster than the training grounds, and I haven’t been able to train on it that much so far. That’s why I just wanted to find my rhythm a little more. That’s why I hit a few more balls with Mischa. “

To the author

Jannik Schneider is a freelance journalist and reports on tennis, doping sports policy and mental health, among other things. He also reports from Turin daily in his Podcast Advantage.

With this attitude, even greater sporting successes should only be a matter of time. After this long, eleven-month and exhausting season, Zverev is once again going to his last reserves at short notice in Turin. The prestigious event, which moved to Italy after eleven years in London and is considered the unofficial world championship, was won by Zverev in 2018. At that time he first defeated Federer, then Djokovic.

The Serb, who broke the next record and will finish the year as number one in the world for the seventh time, is considered the favorite in the other group. For Zverev, the group win against Medvedev is already on Tuesday, before the Polish debutant Hubert Hurkacz waits for Zverev at the end of the group phase.

Zverev on feared opponent Medvedev

Against Medvedev, Zverev has lost the last four clashes, most recently defeated at the masters tournament in Paris with 2: 6 and 2: 6. Then Zverev put the bat down for five days. Zverev is now annoyed in press rounds by the questions about a remedy against the Russians. “Hopefully I won’t be as tired as I was in Paris. I’ve got my strength back and I think it’s going to be a very interesting match,” said the German.

If the spotlight is not as bright as on the Center Court, the answers are often shorter and the mood more impatient. Zverev has already improved in this regard as well. Coupled with many problems outside of the courts, however, there has been no flawless public image in recent years.

Zverev has been facing constant and violent headwinds for more than a year, especially in social media. One of his ex-girlfriends, the Russian photographer Olya Sharypova, seriously accused him in two longreads in the American magazines “Raquet” and “Slate” in autumn 2020 and 2021, both before the US Open. It’s about physical and psychological violence. After a long silence, the ATP has even interfered with an official investigation. Exactly how this works is covered by the bandage. Sharypova is said not to have been contacted yet. Zverev has been silent since his last statement on the sidelines of the US Open and had enforced an injunction at the time. After the investigation was announced, many international media picked up the issue again. Zverev is viewed critically from many sides.

But he made a positive impression on the Tifosi on Sunday. And Berrettini, who spoke of the “worst tennis day” of his career with his cap pulled low over his face, thanked Zverev for encouraging words.

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