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Alexander Zverev in the game against Novak Djokovic
Photo: BRANDON MALONE / AFP
Alexander Zverev has a big topic these days, it's about: recognition.
The German addressed this himself in the course of the Australian Open, already after his victory in the third round he complained that he was missing it: "Lately and here again at the Australian Open, I am not seen as a favorite", he said in a TV interview.
The experts would see other players up front, even though he, Zverev, thought he was better than his opponents.
He takes it personally and wants to teach people better.
"Let's see how far I can get."
There were two more games, on Tuesday the 23-year-old lost his quarter-final match against Novak Djokovic 7: 6, 2: 6, 4: 6 and 6: 7.
The tournament is over for Zverev, who missed perhaps the best chance of his career to date for a Grand Slam title.
His opponent had many warm words for him.
"We pushed each other to the limit, if he had won it would not have been undeserved," said Djokovic after the match.
The search for the lack of recognition will nevertheless continue.
Zverev is at a crucial point in his career.
He no longer qualifies as a "next-gen" professional.
Players like 19-year-old Italian Jannik Sinner or Félix Auger-Aliassime, 20, from Canada come from this new generation.
Zverev is more experienced, also more consistent.
He made it back into the decisive phase of a Grand Slam in Melbourne with relative ease.
What he lacks in the big tournaments are - in addition to titles - successes against the "top ten" players.
0: 9, that's Zverev's record in the majors against Rafael Nadal, Roger Federer, Djokovic and Co. Last year he lost in Australia in the semifinals against Dominic Thiem.
"I'm not far away," he said this time, clearly dejected.
"But it's Novak."
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"It's Novak"
Photo: Paul Zimmer / imago images / Paul Zimmer
What Zverev lacks to put a Djokovic on such a stage is also the mental strength.
Afterwards the Serb spoke of a "mind game", a mind game with "a lot of nerves, a lot of pressure".
Zverev got off to a good start and won set one, after the eight-time Australian Open winner equalized the set, the German was already 4-1 in the third set and 3-0 in the fourth set.
And yet in the end he lost the match.
"Champions find a way", the American tennis icon Billie Jean King once said.
Champions always find a way.
Zverev has to keep looking for this.
Zverev is rebuilding his team
"I'm not deviating from my goal of winning a Grand Slam tournament this year," said Zverev afterwards.
That sounded like defiance, on the other hand, he has also had a development process behind him: his serve has become more stable compared to last year, the basic strokes are among the hardest on the men's tour, Zverev has gained muscle mass, the movements appear more fluid.
The fact that Germany's best tennis player matured on the pitch also has something to do with David Ferrer.
"He's the trainer who understands me best and has made me better," Zverev had already praised on the sidelines of the US Open 2020, which for him only ended with a final defeat against Thiem.
The successful collaboration with Ferrer only lasted six months and surprisingly ended a few weeks before the start of the Australian Open.
Private reasons with the ex-coach were decisive.
Also in mid-January, Zverev split from TEAM8.
The Federer agency had only signed him in 2019.
In the future, he wanted to rely almost entirely on his family in troubled times, he explained the step.
Last fall, Zverev's ex-girlfriend Olga Sharypova made serious allegations against him.
Zverev hit her head on the wall, pressed a pillow on her face.
Allegations that Alexander Zverev vehemently denies.
At the same time, Brenda Patea, another ex-girlfriend, announced that she was expecting a child from Zverev.
Zverev told SPIEGEL at the time that it was “super young, super early”, but he was happy.
Zverev then started the new season with a small team, with his big brother, Mischa Zverev, who is actually a professional player himself, but now mainly looks after his brother as a trainer and manager.
The team appears very relaxed, Zverev dragged his ten-year-old brother onto the podium against his will at one of the official video press conferences.
He needs this looseness to play good tennis, emphasized Zverev in Melbourne again and again.
In addition to brother Mischa, the team also includes Alexander Zverev's best friend Marcelo Melo, as well as his father Alexander Senior and physiotherapist Hugo Gravis.
A small circle, Zverev has built an oasis of well-being.
Will that be enough to achieve his great goal of winning a Grand Slam title?
“The Germans should get to know me better.
They should cheer for me and get up at four in the morning when I'm in a Grand Slam final, "Zverev said shortly before the start of the Australian Open in a video interview with the German Tennis Association.
It is more likely the other way around: first the title, then the recognition.
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