Why Alexander Zverev was expelled from the Mexican Tennis Open in Acapulco

Acapulco, Mexico — German tennis player Alexander Zverev, third in the world ranking, was expelled from the Mexican Tennis Open for violently hitting the referee’s chair with his racket moments after losing a doubles match.

The incident occurred after the pairing of Zverev and Brazilian Marcelo Melo lost 6-2, 4-6, 10-6 to British duo Lloyd Glasspool and Finn Harri Heliovaara on Tuesday night in Acapulco.

Zverev hit the chair umpire three times, sat down for a moment and came back to yell that he had “destroyed the whole (expletive) match” and hit the chair once more with his racket as the umpire came down. At one point, the judge had moved his feet away from him for fear of being hit.

Minutes earlier, Zverev had received a caution for shouting and insulting in protest of a blow that was considered good and led to a match point. Glasspool sealed the victory for his pair with a direct serve.

“Due to unsportsmanlike conduct at the conclusion of his doubles match on Tuesday night, Alexander Zverev was suspended from the tournament in Acapulco,” the tournament said on Twitter early Wednesday.

The 24-year-old German was the defending champion of the men’s tournament. The ATP website gives his rival in the second round, fellow German Peter Gojowczyk, victory in that clash.

To boos from the crowd, Zverev handed the battered racket to a child in the front row.

Earlier in the day, Daniil Medvedev continued his quest for the top spot in the world rankings with his 6-3, 6-4 victory over Benoit Paire. The 26-year-old Russian advanced to the second round of the Mexican Open and could overtake Novak Djokovic and take the lead if he wins the title in Acapulco.

Medvedev, who won the US Open in 2021 and lost to Rafael Nadal in the Australian Open final only this year, is playing in Mexico for the first time.

“It’s not easy to come back after some rest and a while without racing,” said Medvedev, who overcame a break in the second set to claim victory. “I managed to fight to the end against a very tough opponent, and I’m happy to have won.”

In the next round, Medvedev will face Spaniard Pablo Andújar, who overwhelmed local Alex Hernández 6-0, 6-1.

If he wins the tournament or if he reaches the final and Djokovic is not crowned in Dubai, Medvedev will be first in the ranking. No tennis player other than Djokovic, Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal or Andy Murray has held that position since 2004.

Medvedev said that he is thinking about reaching the top. However, he acknowledged that it might not happen so soon.

“I know that in the next three tournaments that can be a possibility. And that is why I will try to do that, because it is no longer a dream but a goal”, he commented. “And I will try to play well in the next three tournaments to achieve that.”

Perhaps the biggest obstacle for Medvedev to achieve his goal in this Mexican port is Nadal. The Spaniard opened his involvement later, with a 6-3, 6-2 win over American Denis Kudla.

Nadal, who has won three titles in Acapulco (2005, 2013 and 2020), will play on Wednesday against Stefan Kozlof, another tennis player who had fallen but kept going due to a player injury.

Medvedev could face Nadal for the first time since the final in Australia, in the semis in Acapulco. The Mallorcan came from behind to take the trophy at Melbourne Park in five sets.

With this, he set a record by reaching 21 Grand Slam titles, beating Federer and Djokovic by one.

In other matches on Tuesday, American Tommy Paul advanced when fifth-seeded Italian Matteo Berrettini withdrew from his match in the second set with an abdominal injury.

Paul will face Dusan Lajovic in the second round.

For his part, Japan’s Yoshihito Nishioka beat Spain’s Feliciano López 2-6, 6-0, 6-4.

The Mexican Tennis Open, an ATP 500 tournament, is played on hard courts at the GNP Arena in Acapulco.