Next German desperate
Zverev fails because of the unpredictable Bublik
06/24/2023, 3:55 p.m
The dream of the final at the tennis tournament in Halle bursts for Alexander Zverev: In the round of the top four, Germany’s tennis ace fails at Alexander Bublik from Kazakhstan. Like Jan-Lennard Struff before him, Zverev can’t cope with the opponent’s unorthodox game.
Tennis Olympic champion Alexander Zverev missed the final of the ATP tournament in Halle. The 26-year-old from Hamburg lost to the strong Kazakh Alexander Bublik 3:6, 5:7. The good matches at the start of the grass season should give Zverev courage, at the classic in Wimbledon from July 3rd he will try again for his first Grand Slam title.
In the first round, the former number two in the world rankings didn’t do much against the current number 48, Zverev conceded an early break and then fell 4-1 behind. He couldn’t catch up, Bublik secured the first set. The Kazakh didn’t let up, in addition to his extremely good serves, Bublik played very multifaceted, unpredictable for his opponent and kept Zverev in trouble with many sensitive stops and well-coordinated trips to the net.
In a long, balanced second set, it was Zverev again who gave up his serve when the score was 5: 5, Bublik easily used his chance to win the match. The Kazakh had already thrown a German tennis ace out of the tournament in the round of 16, and Jan-Lennard Struff also couldn’t cope with the 26-year-old’s unorthodox game.
Despite his form curve continuing to improve, the top German player still has to wait for his first final after the serious ankle injury last year. At the French Open and at the ATP event in Geneva, he was also eliminated in the semifinals. Bublik will play in Sunday’s final against either Roberto Bautista Agut (Spain), who had previously knocked out top seed Daniil Medvedev, or the in-form Russian Andrei Rublev for his second career title.