Opening victory with self-criticism
Zverev stumbles into the Australian Open
01/17/2022, 1:40 p.m
Olympic champion Alexander Zverev starts the Australian Open without losing a set, but also without top form. In the German duel against Daniel Altmaier, despite weaker phases in round one, he ultimately prevailed confidently. After the game, Zverev practices self-criticism.
Alexander Zverev’s engine is still sputtering, but the first of seven steps on the title mission is done. In the unusual role as tournament favorite after Novak Djokovic was expelled, the struggling Olympic champion shook his head more often than he would have liked at the start of the Australian Open. In the German first round duel with Daniel Altmaier, however, the Hamburger prevailed despite a few lack of concentration.
On a successful first day of the tournament from a German perspective, Zverev won 7: 6 (7: 3), 6: 1, 7: 6 (7: 1), even if he was still far from his top form. “Apart from the fact that I won, not much has gone according to plan,” said the third in the world rankings with a laugh: “It’s like that sometimes. It was just the first round of a hopefully long tournament.”
In the second round, Zverev meets Australian local hero John Millman in the hunt for his first Grand Slam title. Dominik Koepfer, Yannick Hanfmann and Oscar Otte also made it into the second round. After the first day of the tournament, only Angelique Kerber is left for the women, who will take part in action against Kaia Kanepi from Estonia on Tuesday.
Tournament winner with a bad aftertaste?
For Zverev, the expulsion of Djokovic resulted in a significantly improved starting position on Sunday evening – together with US Open champion Daniil Medvedev, the Hamburg player is now the top favorite. “The new tournament winner may have a bad aftertaste because he doesn’t have to beat the best. You have to see it that clearly,” Boris Becker noted at Eurosport.
Zverev won’t care. Due to Djokovic’s absence, the 24-year-old has the certainty that he will not be able to meet a better-ranked player until the final. The chance of the first Grand Slam title is great, and in Australia the top German player could kill two birds with one stone: If Zverev triumphed in February, he would also become the new number one in the world.
Against Altmaier, who caused a sensation in 2020 as a qualifier with his entry into the round of 16 at the French Open, Zverev initially expressed more problems than expected. The underdog was completely unimpressed, Zverev initially had difficulties with the timing. But towards the end of the first set, the favorite got into the match better and took control from then on – until more lack of concentration crept in again in the third set.
Can Nadal make the historic triumph?
Of course, this game is not a benchmark. “I see Medvedev and Zverev at the top of the same level,” said Becker, but Rafael Nadal was also “one of the tournament favorites”. In Melbourne, the Spaniard is the only player from the superstar trio with Djokovic and Roger Federer to have the chance to snag the Grand Slam record with the 21st title.
Yannick Hanfmann can test how good Nadal is in shape on Wednesday. The Karlsruher earned his first win in a major with a 6: 2, 6: 3, 6: 2 against the Australian crowd favorite Thanasi Kokkinakis and a duel with the “Matador”, whom he had already lost at the French Open in 2019. On hard court he now wants to “annoy Nadal a little more and just play a good match”.
A good match on Monday was the Black Forest Koepfer in the 6:1, 3:6, 6:4, 6:1 against the Spaniard Carlos Taberner and the Cologne Otte in the 6:4, 6:3, 6:2 victory against Tseng Chun Hsin (Taipei) succeeded. Peter Gojowczyk, Andrea Petkovic and Tatjana Maria were eliminated.