Who is Alexander Zverev?

December 01, 2018 08:06 pm | Updated 08:08 pm IST

Alexander Zverev. File

Alexander Zverev. File

A fortnight ago in London, the rising German tennis star Alexander Zverev won the biggest title of his career, the ATP Finals. Clinching the year-ending finale is a tough ask, for it pits the eight best players on the planet against each other. That he beat two all-time greats in Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic in the semifinal and the final, both in straight sets, was astonishing.

With the triumph, he became the first German to win the ATP Finals since Boris Becker in 1995, and at 21, the youngest champion since Djokovic beat Russian Nikolay Davydenko in Shanghai in 2008.

How did he do it?

Zverev has been playing some of the most ambitious tennis he has ever played. He has always been considered a fine all-round package. At 6-foot-6, he has access to power which can help him play first-strike tennis. But unlike most big men he isn’t averse to rallying, and enjoys constructing points.

One area of concern was his net play, which wasn’t fully formed despite being blessed with a wingspan that should help cut off most passing angles. In London, he brought out the best in all these departments. Against John Isner, a serve machine, he hit 18 aces en route to the win. In his defeat of Federer, he won 16 of 24 points at the net, a conversion rate worthy of Federer himself. In the final, even as he served 10 aces, he left Djokovic, the most outstanding defender in the game, short of breath in 20-plus-shot rallies.

Why is it significant?

Normally someone ranked No. 4 in the world beating the No. 3 and No. 1 players is no big shock. But it is when those felled are Federer and Djokovic. Only three other players have beaten the Swiss and the Serb in the semifinal and final of the same tournament — Rafael Nadal, David Nalbandian and Andy Murray.

In fact, no one had accomplished this feat since Murray did it at the 2012 London Olympics. More significantly, Federer and Djokovic had swept 11 off the last 15 ATP Finals titles. The indoor O2 arena has over the years been perfect for Federer’s game because with the elements not in play, the 20-time Major winner’s shot-making is precise and lethal. On the other hand to beat Djokovic at his peak on a slow and low bouncing surface like in London is considered near-impossible.

What does it mean for Zverev?

It should be seen as validation of all the promise Zverev has shown in the last two years. He has three Masters 1000 titles to his name but the lack of headway at the Grand Slam tournaments has stung. Till date he has only one quarterfinal appearance but the latest victory is enough indication that success will soon be had in the best-of-five-sets format. It can well be argued that Masters are as tough, if not tougher, as the Majors.

While the slams give players time to grow into the competition with its alternate rest days and relatively straightforward opponents in the opening few rounds, the daily grind of the Masters is relentless. Zverev appeared hampered by it after his potentially demoralising defeat against Djokovic (6-4, 6-1) in the round robin stage and even moaned about how long the season was. The swift turnaround is another positive.

How will it shape men’s tennis in 2019?

With Federer and Nadal slowly on the wane and Murray and Stan Wawrinka still in their compromised states, it puts Zverev right in the Grand Slam title mix.

As Zverev himself observed, “The older guys, the Golden Generation as you call them, are still winning most of the trophies. But I hope we younger players, the Next Generation, can get in there and win the bigger titles next season.” It’s true that there have been too many false dawns in the past but the signs of an impending change of guard have never been clearer.

0 / 0
Sign in to unlock member-only benefits!
  • Access 10 free stories every month
  • Save stories to read later
  • Access to comment on every story
  • Sign-up/manage your newsletter subscriptions with a single click
  • Get notified by email for early access to discounts & offers on our products
Sign in

Comments

Comments have to be in English, and in full sentences. They cannot be abusive or personal. Please abide by our community guidelines for posting your comments.

We have migrated to a new commenting platform. If you are already a registered user of The Hindu and logged in, you may continue to engage with our articles. If you do not have an account please register and login to post comments. Users can access their older comments by logging into their accounts on Vuukle.