Alexander Zverev will still have to postpone his date with his first Slam
Alexander Zverev will still have to postpone his date with his first Slam. The German, back in the last act of a Major after the final he lost to Dominic Thiem at the US Open in 2020, surrendered in the fifth set to Carlos Alcaraz.
The Spaniard became the new Roland Garros champion and added a third career Slam to his trophy case by winning at least one on all surfaces. One statistic, in particular, highlights what Zverev’s struggles are in the circuit’s biggest tournaments.
In fact, the Hamburg native owns the highest percentage of defeats once he reaches the semifinals or finals: two matches taken home, eight lost.
Toni Nadal reflects on Alexander Zverev
Carlos Alcaraz treated himself to a few hours of pure fun in Ibiza to celebrate winning his third career Slam at Roland Garros at the age of 21. The Spaniard became the youngest tennis player in history to win at least one Major on all surfaces thanks to his five-set victory over Alexander Zverev in the final.
Toni Nadal, in an editorial for El Pais, explained one of the reasons why Alexander Zverev has yet to win a Grand Slam event.
“On the second point of the first game of the fourth set, after the great comeback in the previous set and after taking a 0-15 lead, Alexander made a trivial mistake and turned angrily to his corner to complain.
A quarter of an hour later, in the blink of an eye, Alcaraz was already 4-0 ahead in this important set,” wrote the famous Spanish coach. “If Zverev has not managed to win a Grand Slam tournament so far, it is certainly because he has never managed to control this type of situation like at the start of the fourth set against Alcaraz.
Carlos faced him in the fourth set after a hard-fought comeback without losing his calm, conviction and confidence in victory. Something that only great champions can achieve. I offer my most sincere compliments to Alcaraz.”