Australian Open: “Happy”: Zverev overcomes weak phase for title dream

Australian Open: “Happy”: Zverev overcomes weak phase for title dream

Australian Open
“Happy”: Zverev overcomes weak phase for title dream


In the round of 16 of the Australian Open, Alexander Zverev survived the first set loss against Frenchman Ugo Humbert. Eva Lys wants to continue her tennis fairytale with a sensational victory.

Alexander Zverev mastered the first phase of weakness in the tournament impressively – and in another bizarre interview with Andrea Petkovic, the German tennis star also showed strong counterattacks. “I think you party too much,” Zverev said with a smile to the ex-player, who asked her questions in a croaking voice in the John Cain Arena.

Zverev’s mood could have changed in the round of 16 of the Australian Open against Frenchman Ugo Humbert. But the world number two recovered after losing the first set of the tournament and finally deservedly won 6:1, 2:6, 6:3, 6:2. “In the second set my energy level was a bit low,” Zverev explained his small slump: “But also because my opponent played so well and I could hardly do anything.”

While tournament sensation Eva “Lucky” Lys gathered strength for the biggest match of her life so far on Monday against world number two Iga Swiatek, Zverev had to fight harder than expected against number 14 Humbert.

Zverev has his sights set on the final

Zverev said he was “extremely happy” about reaching the quarter-finals. After the first match point, converted after 2:16 hours, he raised his fist and showed his teeth. “I definitely want to play three more matches here,” said the 2021 Olympic champion aggressively with a view to the planned final next Sunday: “I’m really enjoying it in Australia and want to be here as long as possible.”

In his fourth quarter-final in Melbourne, even more opposition is likely to await on Tuesday: his next opponent is the number 12 seeded US professional Tommy Paul, who made an excellent impression in the 6:1, 6:1, 6:1 against the Spaniard Alejandro Davidovich Fokina left behind.

The statistics speak against Zverev: he lost the two previous duels with Paul on hard courts. The American plays tactically smart, said Zverev: “I think I have more power and I have to take advantage of that.” After that there would be a top match against Novak Djokovic or Carlos Alcaraz, who made the giant quarter-finals perfect. “There will be no more easy matches – certainly not,” said Zverev.

Becker: Zverev “completely surprised”

At the beginning Zverev acted very confidently against Humbert. The Hamburger impressed with powerful service, powerful groundstrokes and soulful stops. 15 winning strokes in the first set alone demonstrated the German’s dominance.

In the second round, however, Humbert showed a significantly improved return game, he took more risks with Zverev’s serve and was rewarded with the break to make it 3-2. Zverev remained calm on the outside, but his error rate increased noticeably. Sometimes he looked at his box, perplexed.

Humbert “changed his game and completely surprised Alexander Zverev,” said Eurosport expert Boris Becker. But Zverev recovered and deservedly left the pitch as the winner.

With his 105th victory on the Grand Slam stage, Zverev drew level with Tommy Haas. Of all male German tennis professionals in history, only Becker (163) has more victories to his name.

Lys wants a sensation against Swiatek

Eva Lys wants to follow Zverev into the quarter-finals on Monday (9 a.m. CET/Eurosport) – but that would be a sensation. The 23-year-old, who was the first female lucky loser to ever reach the round of 16 of the Australian Open, is a complete outsider against the Polish Swiatek.

“For me, there is no hotter match,” said Lys before the primetime duel in the Rod Laver Arena with one of the big tournament favorites: “That’s the reason why I play tennis. I want to compete with the best in the world. “

The Hamburger, who was actually eliminated in qualifying and subsequently moved into the main draw, wants to enjoy the biggest match of her career so far: “As long as I’m having fun on the pitch, I know that I’m a very dangerous player.”

Zverev will keep his fingers crossed for her. Lys is experiencing “an incredible story,” he said: “She should enjoy that too. I think she deserves to be on Center Court.”

dpa

Source: Stern

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Latest Posts