Alexander Zverev’s Roller Coaster Ride at Roland Garros: A Tale of Tactical Choices and Mental Maturity

It was a curious flashback witnessed by the short Philippe-Chatrier. For nearly 4 hours and 15 minutes, spectators were able to admire a player from the past, a player who had disappeared for more than five years, a fan of sinusoidal tennis, sometimes passive, sometimes impressive. This Saturday, Alexander Zverev had little to do with the recent winner of the Masters 1000 in Rome or with the winner of Rafael Nadal. The number 4 seed looked more like the version of his younger years, where his early Grand Slam exits punctuated his almost impeccable career elsewhere.

Inconstant, passive, with an unusual waste, the big German allowed himself to be boxed by a long-enterprising Tallon Griekspoor. The first big sensation in this men’s draw was close: in the last set, Zverev was down 1-4, double break conceded. He admits it without problem, he saw himself outside. “Oh my god, if you knew…, he smiled at the press conference. I already had all my speech prepared for my team. I knew what I was going to say to my coach, to my sparring partner, to my physical trainer, really, everything was ready, I was going to beat the shit out of them, you can’t imagine (laughs).”

Tactical choice and mental maturity

Ultimately, it was with the relief of qualifying that Zverev was able to reunite with his family after the match. Relieved but above all proud that his survival instinct got him out of a bad situation. “When you are down 4-1, double break against you, there is still little chance of coming back, he analyzed. But I played a very good game at 4-1 then at 4-3, he started thinking too much. Then, in the tiebreak, I felt like I was playing my best tennis in the whole match.” Listening to him, it all started from a tactical choice.

With his back to the wall, Zverev rebelled. Finished being mistreated by his opponent’s serve, the German decided to take his courage in both hands to take control of the game a little more. “The first thing I did was to change my position on the return, he explained I was really far from my line so I got closer because he was killing me with his serves and volleys in the fourth and fifth set. More offensive, and therefore more impactful, Zverev sowed the little seed in the mind of the Dutchman, suddenly caught up in the challenge.

Alexander Zverev, Roland Garros 2024

Credit: Getty Images

“At that moment in the match, my state of mind was simple: how can I give myself the best chance of coming back?”, he finally detailed. Zverev sought this victory much more with his head than with his racket. A real step forward and a real sign that he is no longer quite the same player. Even in the face of refereeing decisions that could have taken him out of the match, he remained faithful to his task and his quest.

Rune, like a mirror

“I think the difference is in age,” he said when asked about this new attitude. “It comes with maturity in reality. I told myself recently that I wanted to become another player , that I wanted to be more exemplary in fact. So I don’t break rackets anymore, I have very few warnings. It’s something that I internalized, I realized that I wasn’t doing any good. no one: neither to me nor to the kids who watch me. I’m proud that it works.

After the emotional trap against Rafael Nadal in the 1st round, Alexander Zverev managed to avoid the easy one in the 3rd round. In the round of 16, he will challenge Holger Rune. The Dane also resembles young Sasha: his matches are a permanent roller coaster with big strong moments followed by inexplicable slumps. The duel will have the merit of offering yet another challenge to the German. But, so far, Zverev has the answer to everything.

2024-06-01 20:52:00
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