- Next Zverev drama, gold dream ends in a blow
Completely exhausted, Alexander Zverev waved to the audience one last time after his dream of a second Olympic gold had been dashed, then left the Parisian tennis stadium disappointed. Exactly three years after his coup in Tokyo, the best German tennis player, hampered by health problems, fell in the quarterfinals at high summer temperatures, losing 5:7, 5:7 to Italian Lorenzo Musetti.
Afterwards, Zverev lamented the missed medal opportunity. "I've had defeats in my career that were more disappointing. But what's most disappointing is that the Olympics only come around once every four years," he said. Wimbledon semifinalist Musetti converted his first match point after 2 hours and 4 minutes, crushing Zverev's hopes of a second Olympic triumph.
Zverev feels "terrible"
The 27-year-old revealed after the match that physical problems had been hindering him throughout the week. "I was getting really, really tired every time and needed longer breaks," Zverev reported. Against Musetti, he felt "terrible" after one set, explaining that he would have blood tests done in his adopted home of Monaco.
He doesn't believe the fatigue is related to his diabetes. "Then you have the feeling you're slower and you don't want to do anything too strenuous," Zverev described. After a certain period of time, he starts to feel dizzy. "I see four balls coming at me and I can't do anything."
Once again, his body had thwarted his plans to achieve a major goal. At Wimbledon, Zverev had felt better on grass than ever before in his career, only to be severely hampered by a knee injury in the quarterfinals.
The German Tennis Federation missed its minimum goal of one medal with the elimination of the last remaining participant. Zverev had already squandered his second medal chance in the mixed doubles with Laura Siegemund in the first round. The day before, Angelique Kerber also lost in the quarterfinals of the women's singles in her final career match.
In Tokyo, Zverev made tennis history for Germany
Carried by the feeling of representing the entire nation, Zverev stormed through the Olympic tournament three years ago in Japan. Not even Serbian top star Novak Djokovic could stop the German tennis hopeful in the semifinals. On August 1, 2021, he became the first German tennis player to win gold in the men's singles.
His quarterfinal against Musetti was scheduled late in the afternoon, although he had finished his round of 16 match later than the Italian the day before. However, Zverev didn't think the short break was a deciding factor.
As in previous rounds, Zverev didn't find his rhythm in the match and quickly lost his first service game, going down 0:1. He struggled with Musetti's serve from Tuscany.
Zverev's break deficit persisted until 4:5. He took advantage of one of Musetti's rare mistakes to level the set. However, three preventable errors led to the next service break. After 61 minutes, the first set was lost - after a stop volley from the Italian that surprised Zverev, who was positioned far behind the baseline with short balls.
Under scorching temperatures, Zverev had finally swapped his black national outfit for a white t-shirt during the match. During the changeover, he not only placed cooling towels on his shoulders but also ice packs on his head or under his shirt. In the second set, he even accepted a fan from spectators in the front row and fanned himself with it.
At 4-3, the organizers closed the roof, casting shade on the court. However, this didn't help Zverev. At 5-5, he faltered on his own serve, allowing the Italian to secure the crucial break. "It's time to figure out what's going on and hopefully get back to my best form, which I had a few weeks ago," said Zverev.
Despite his efforts, Zverev was unable to replicate his Wimbledon success at the Olympics, falling short in the quarterfinals. His dream of defending his gold medal at Wimbledon will continue next year.
Regrettably, Zverev's Olympic campaign ended at Wimbledon, where he had reached the semifinals just a few weeks prior. His hopes of a double Wimbledon and Olympic victory were dashed.
