Alexander Zverev leaves Wimbledon with a sore knee. A huge Grand Slam chance is gone. He has his sights set on another sporting highlight of the summer. But there are concerns.
Despite all his frustration at Wimbledon and the pain in his swollen left knee, Alexander Zverev has set himself the next goal. Although he first has to recover from a “bone edema and a strain in the capsule”, the gold medal will be dangling around his neck in Paris on August 4. After the next chapter of a Grand Slam drama in his tennis career, the dejected Tokyo Olympic champion can laugh a little again at the thought of the Olympics.
“I want to win Paris, there’s no question about that,” said the 27-year-old in his final sets before leaving the “Media Theatre” at Wimbledon. Halfway up, he added with a broad grin: “And carry the flag.”
Race against time
There are just 19 days between his exit from the popular grass Grand Slam tournament in southwest London and the start of the Olympic competition at the Stade Roland Garros on July 27. “Three weeks is more than enough time,” predicted Zverev. “Unless I’m smart enough to lift 300 kilos of tennis tomorrow and damage my knee.” But how realistic is it to be in top form in Paris after a break?
After the Wimbledon round of 16 match against the American Taylor Fritz, Zverev spoke of the significant problems his knee had caused him. He could hardly move, and everything that was “two meters” away was difficult. The decisive factor for him was that from the middle of the third set onwards he could no longer push off with his left leg to serve. From that moment on, the game changed.
The world number four successfully got through the first two sets. But then lost what was thought to be a sure match with 6:4, 7:6 (7:4), 4:6, 6:7 (3:7), 3:6. Once again, Zverev will no longer be there when the success stories are written at Wimbledon. The opportunity was great.
Appearance in Hamburg becomes questionable
At the Olympics in Tokyo three years ago, Zverev wrote his fairytale and became the first German Olympic champion in the men’s singles. Does he have a chance in Paris?
“Because the break is not that long and he played well, that is not out of the question,” Davis Cup team boss Michael Kohlmann told the German Press Agency on Tuesday. “If anyone can grit his teeth, it is certainly Sascha. But he also has to listen to his body and look at the long term.”
It is uncertain whether Zverev will gain match practice in Hamburg beforehand. His injury could “go away within a week or usually within two to three weeks,” he said. He does not want to play long-term with “an incredible amount of painkillers” like he did against Fritz. “It’s nothing that won’t heal on its own. It just takes time. Yesterday I couldn’t even walk.”
Dramas are increasing
The keywords Hamburg and bone edema are reminiscent of 2022. After his ligament injury in his foot in the semifinals at the French Open, Zverev wanted to make his comeback in the Davis Cup. It fell through because he had put too much strain on himself and a bone edema slowed him down.
Zverev has been involved in sporting dramas time and again in recent years. His hunt for Grand Slam titles has repeatedly ended in vain. In Paris two years ago, after an initially brilliant performance against Rafael Nadal, he said goodbye to the audience on crutches. In 2023, in Paris, he reported a strain in his thigh when he had no chance in the semifinals against Casper Ruud.
On the big tennis stage, the number of lost leads at the Grand Slams is also increasing. The 2020 US Open final he lost against Dominic Thiem after winning two sets is unforgettable. In Melbourne at the start of this season, he also looked like the winner in the semi-final against Daniil Medvedev – and then said he had had a fever the night before. In Paris a month ago, he was one set away from victory against Carlos Alcaraz.
“At some point you really start to think that maybe it’s not meant for you,” said Zverev: “In 2022 I’m playing the best clay court tennis I’ve ever played, I really feel like I can keep up with Nadal, that I can win the tournament, get injured,” he reflected: “Here I feel like I’m playing my best grass court tennis I’ve ever played. Get injured. Maybe at some point I’ll have a little more luck.”
Source: Stern

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