
After his Wimbledon exit in the 1st round, Alexander Zverev talks about mental problems. He feels alone and may need therapy. What happens now?
Alexander Zverev put his face in his left hand and spoke in a quiet, clear voice. "I like tennis" was written on the back of his white T-shirt in Wimbledon's cinema-like Media Theatre - but his statements went far beyond the sport. With remarkable clarity, the 28-year-old revealed mental problems, a feeling of loneliness in his life and a lack of motivation on and off the court after his first-round exit. What is the next step for the world number 3?
He may need therapy for the first time in his life. "I've never felt so empty. I'm missing the fun in everything I do," said Zverev two hours after his early defeat to Frenchman Arthur Rinderknech about his mental life. "Something in me has to change, something that doesn't necessarily lie on the tennis court."
There was no sign of it
Even his closest confidants were surprised by the three-time Grand Slam finalist's statements. Zverev's brother Mischa, who is almost ten years older than him, tried to classify it later that evening as a Prime Video TV pundit. "There was no indication of anything great, I learn a lot of things from you too," said the former professional. "One or two days after an event, you get together again and then you talk about the topic again. A few hours or a few minutes after an event, you're still completely different."
In Wimbledon, Zverev relied on his familiar surroundings, stood on the training court with his father and his brother Mischa lived with him in the same house. In contrast to the preparatory tournament in Halle in south-west London, girlfriend Sophia Thomalla was absent, which has also been the case at previous Grand Slam tournaments in view of her own life as a TV presenter and advertising face.
Daughter as the most important person in her life
At the tournaments in Germany, Zverev was also accompanied by his daughter Mayla. She is the person who makes him the happiest in life, he said. "But she's four. Normally it has to be the other way around, I have to give her energy, I have to make her happy and not the other way around. It can't be that way."
They had already spoken after the lost match, Mischa Zverev reported on Tuesday evening. "We talked about various things, including positive things, including the match. We talked about things that are fun and that we can do in the coming weeks. But it all seemed positive." He takes his brother's statements seriously, he emphasized. "I try to listen and then, if I can, help."
But another external advisor in Team Zverev?
When asked what this help might look like, Alexander Zverev was initially at a loss. He hopes to be able to provide answers at the tournament in Toronto, Canada, at the end of July. He also did not rule out the possibility of consulting external advisors in the Zverev family business again. He had recently gruffly rejected this advice from legend Boris Becker, which had caused a veritable summer theater in the German tennis cosmos.
Zverev reported that he has had mental problems since the Australian Open. There he missed out on his big dream of his first Grand Slam triumph by losing to Italian Jannik Sinner in the final. After that, the Hamburg native restlessly played tournament after tournament in order to have a chance of achieving his second dream - the top of the world rankings. However, this futile hunt turned into an "emotional rollercoaster ride" (Mischa Zverev) due to early defeats. A four-week break from tournaments is now an absolute exception in the tight schedule of a professional tennis player.