Alexander Zverev said on Wednesday that he deserves to be suspended if he violates the truce which was awarded to him by the ATP for his outburst in Acapulco last month, where he smashed his racket into the umpire’s chair and verbally abused him. The world number three was fined $40,000 and forfeited more than $31,000 in prize money and all the ranking points he earned in singles and doubles at the Mexican Open tournament.
Upon review, the ATP issued an additional $25,000 fine and an eight-week ban from playing any ATP-sanctioned event, but suspended that sanction provided that he incurs no more unsportsmanlike conduct fines over the next year.
“If I do that again, they have every right to ban me from playing. It’s as simple as that.”Zverev told reporters before the start of the Indian Wells tennis tournament.
“If I do it again, it means I haven’t learned, truth? I believe that everyone in life deserves a second chance, everyone makes mistakes. But if you repeatedly make mistakes, it means you haven’t learned,” he pointed out. “So if that happens again, I should be banned from playing. But i will do my best to make sure it doesn’t happen, not just in the next year, but in my entire careerZverev assured.
After losing in doubles in Acapulco and upset over a call line in the match, Zverev stepped up to the umpire’s chair. Alessandro Germani and came dangerously close to hitting him as he swayed in the official grandstand before making his way to his courtside seat.
The 2020 US Open runner-up walked up to the chair for the second time and hit it again while yelling expletives.
The 24-year-old German described the incident as the biggest mistake of his tennis career and said he was embarrassed to walk through the Indian Wells locker room. “I can guarantee you that I will never act like this again in my career.. It was the worst moment of my life, of my career in general,” she said.
