Alexander Zverev is back at the highest level and it was not a foregone conclusion after the serious ankle injury he suffered at the 2022 French Open. The German champion was playing his best tennis at the time and had reached the semifinals in Paris, where he was putting a legend like Rafael Nadal in great difficulty on the iconic Philippe Chatrier.
A serious ankle injury not only prevented him from finishing the match against Rafa, but forced him to undergo surgery and a very long period of rehabilitation. Many players would not return to compete at the highest level after such a serious injury, but Sascha never gave up and succeeded in his goal thanks to the help of his team (and his beautiful family).
2024 was the year that sanctioned the definitive ‘rebirth’ of Zverev, who ended the season in second position in the ATP ranking thanks to his excellent consistency. The champion from Hamburg does not often have his curse in Grand Slam tournaments, losing the Roland Garros final to Carlos Alcaraz and missing two important chances at the Australian Open and the US Open, but he has shown that he is not far from that goal.
Sascha – who won two Masters 1000 in 2024 (Rome and Paris-Bercy) – changed his approach in the second half of the year, adopted a more aggressive attitude from the baseline and seemed more confident in his abilities. It is no coincidence that Alexander has surpassed Alcaraz in the ATP ranking thanks to his results in the latter part of the season. The German ace – who will start his 2025 at the United Cup – is intent on achieving even better results next season.
Zverev has been practicing hard in recent weeks and will try to win the Australian Open, in which he will be the number 2 seed. The 2024 French Open finalist will only be able to face World No.1 Jannik Sinner in the final.
A terrible injury
During a long interview with his sponsor ‘Head’, the current World No.2 recalled his serious injury at the 2022 French Open: “I mean, 2022 at the French Open was the toughest moment of my career.
I was one match away from being world No 1, playing probably the best tennis of my life against the greatest clay court player to ever live in Rafael Nadal.
“And it was a tough moment for me, because even if I lose the match, right, it’s Nadal – anything could happen. You can lose at the French Open to him, I mean everybody has lost to him before. So it’s not a surprise, even if you lose.
But, knowing in the back of my mind I need to win one match within three months to become world No 1, that was difficult for me.
And obviously being in a cast and not being able to not only play, but just simply to walk and do daily things, that was tough.”
Sascha wants more
The German champion understood that he had to change something in his game in order to defeat two very tough opponents like Sinner and Alcaraz. The Italian and Spaniard are dominating the men’s tour and have equally split the four Major titles in 2024. Jannik won the Australian Open and the US Open, while Carlitos prevailed at Roland Garros and Wimbledon.
Zverev is one of the few players who has the skills to beat these two young champions, but he needs further improvement to succeed in this feat in the most prestigious tournaments. Sascha still feels too much pressure in Grand Slam tournaments and struggles to make the right choices in the decisive rounds, as was evident especially at the 2024 US Open. Alexander – finalist in New York in 2020 – had a great chance after the premature eliminations of Alcaraz and Nole Djokovic in the first week. However, the current world No. 1 did not manage his nerves in the best way and played a horrible match against Taylor Fritz in the quarterfinals. Fans and insiders expect the German to grow in this aspect in 2025.
Unlike Sinner and Alcaraz, Sascha decided not to participate in the Davis Cup Finals in Malaga at the end of last season. The 2020 US Open finalist immediately began preparation for 2025, which will begin as early as the United Cup at the end of December for him. Zverev will use that event to get into the right rhythm ahead of the 2025 Australian Open, a tournament that suits his game very well and in which he came close to reaching the final this year (losing to Russian ace Daniil Medvedev with big regrets). The German could really leave everyone speechless.
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