All eyes are now on him: Will Alexander Zverev manage to win a Grand Slam title? The chances are better than ever - but that could be the problem for the German.
No time? blue News summarizes for you
- After the elimination of many of the favorites, Alexander Zverev's chances of winning the French Open are better than ever before.
- So far, the German tennis pro has not been able to cope with the pressure - this year, Zverev is making his 40th attempt on the Grand Slam stage in Paris (without qualifying).
- Zverev will face the young Spanish star Rafael Jódar in the quarter-finals on Tuesday.
Alexander Zverev sounded like a footballer at the press conference. "I'm going to concentrate on the match in front of me - that's the only thing I can control," said the world number 3 when asked about his sudden role as favorite at the French Open. And the 29-year-old doesn't even want to let the pressure from outside get to him: "My cell phone is off."
Whether this is really the case all the time is at least doubtful. We can only speculate as to whether Zverev is really that good at pushing away the huge pressure of the title.
In the quarter-finals, Zverev, who is in the last eight in Paris for the sixth time in a row, will face the young Spanish star Rafael Jódar. In theory, the 1.98 meter tall tennis star is only three wins away from his first Grand Slam triumph. For many experts, he has to do it now to avoid coming out of the Roland Garros tournament as a big loser.
How is Zverev dealing with the pressure now?
"If he doesn't win it this time, I don't know if he'll ever win one. So the pressure is even greater now," said John McEnroe on Eurosport.
According to the tennis icon, the world number three has the class: "The crucial question is how he deals with the pressure that is now suddenly on him. He was long regarded as the best player who has never won a major. That has stuck in his head."
Rafael Nadal once said that Zverev has so far lacked the mental strength to win a Grand Slam title. "Unfortunately, I think it's in his head. Because if you look at his level of tennis, he should have won one already," the Spaniard said.
"He has to believe in himself," the 14-time Paris winner demanded before the tournament and added: "Above all, he has to manage himself well mentally."
One thing is clear: After Jannik Sinner's dramatic exit, Novak Djokovic's third-round defeat and the absence of Carlos Alcaraz due to injury, the door is wide open for Zverev. However, the Hamburg native has often shown weakness in the past when it really mattered. He now has to fight against that. Zverev knows that anything other than winning the title would be seen as a failure by the public. Presumably also by himself.
Perhaps the support of Salma Hayek will help him. The Mexican actress watched the round of 16 match against Jesper de Jong on Court Philippe Chatrier on Sunday.
All world number 1 tennis players
No.29: Jannik Sinner.
Image: Imago
No.28: Carlos Alcaraz.
Image: Keystone
No. 27: Daniil Medvedev
Image: Keystone
No.26: Andy Murray.
Image: Imago
No. 25: Novak Djokovic.
Image: Keystone
No. 24: Rafael Nadal
Image: sda
No. 23: Roger Federer.
Image: sda
No. 22: Andy Roddick.
Image: sda
No. 21: Juan Carlos Ferrero.
Image: KEYSTONE
No. 20: Lleyton Hewitt
Image: sda
No. 19: Gustavo Kuerten.
Image: KEYSTONE
No. 18: Marat Safin.
Image: KEYSTONE
No. 17: Patrick Rafter.
Image: KEYSTONE
No. 16: Yevgeny Kafelnikov.
Image: KEYSTONE
No. 15: Carlos Moya.
Image: KEYSTONE
No. 14: Marcelo Rios.
Image: KEYSTONE
No. 13: Thomas Muster.
Image: AP
No. 12: Andre Agassi.
Image: KEYSTONE
No. 11: Pete Sampras.
Image: KEYSTONE
No. 10: Jim Courier.
Image: KEYSTONE
No. 9: Boris Becker.
Image: KEYSTONE
No. 8: Stefan Edberg.
Image: KEYSTONE
No. 7: Mats Wilander.
Image: KEYSTONE
No. 6: Ivan Lend.
Image: KEYSTONE
No. 5: John McEnroe.
Image: KEYSTONE
No. 4: Björn Borg.
Image: KEYSTONE
No. 3: Jimmy Connors.
Image: KEYSTONE
No. 2: John Newcombe.
Image: KEYSTONE
No. 1: Ilie Nastase.
Image: KEYSTONE
No.29: Jannik Sinner.
Image: Imago
No.28: Carlos Alcaraz.
Image: Keystone
No. 27: Daniil Medvedev
Image: Keystone
No.26: Andy Murray.
Image: Imago
No. 25: Novak Djokovic.
Image: Keystone
No. 24: Rafael Nadal
Image: sda
No. 23: Roger Federer.
Image: sda
No. 22: Andy Roddick.
Image: sda
No. 21: Juan Carlos Ferrero.
Image: KEYSTONE
No. 20: Lleyton Hewitt
Image: sda
No. 19: Gustavo Kuerten.
Image: KEYSTONE
No. 18: Marat Safin.
Image: KEYSTONE
No. 17: Patrick Rafter.
Image: KEYSTONE
No. 16: Yevgeny Kafelnikov.
Image: KEYSTONE
No. 15: Carlos Moya.
Image: KEYSTONE
No. 14: Marcelo Rios.
Image: KEYSTONE
No. 13: Thomas Muster.
Image: AP
No. 12: Andre Agassi.
Image: KEYSTONE
No. 11: Pete Sampras.
Image: KEYSTONE
No. 10: Jim Courier.
Image: KEYSTONE
No. 9: Boris Becker.
Image: KEYSTONE
No. 8: Stefan Edberg.
Image: KEYSTONE
No. 7: Mats Wilander.
Image: KEYSTONE
No. 6: Ivan Lend.
Image: KEYSTONE
No. 5: John McEnroe.
Image: KEYSTONE
No. 4: Björn Borg.
Image: KEYSTONE
No. 3: Jimmy Connors.
Image: KEYSTONE
No. 2: John Newcombe.
Image: KEYSTONE
No. 1: Ilie Nastase.
Image: KEYSTONE
