It didn’t go until 3:06 a.m., a new Roland-Garros record established by Novak Djokovic and Lorenzo Musetti during the night from Saturday to Sunday. But the spectators of the night session this Monday at the Philippe-Chatrier consoled themselves for having waited an hour – the time for Djokovic, again, to come back from nowhere against Francisco Cerundolo to reach the quarter-finals – by attending to another prolonged showdown between Alexander Zverev and Holger Rune. The German emerged victorious from this last round of 16 at more than 1:40 a.m., after a new marathon in five sets of 4h11′.
An exercise of which he is not only accustomed but also a specialist. In the 3rd round, the world No. 4 had already had to battle for 4h14′ to win the super tie-break against the Dutchman Tallon Griekspoor. His expertise does not stop there. Yesterday he won his 10th match in five sets at Porte d’Auteuil, for only one defeat over this length. This edifying statistic calls for two levels of interpretation. It firstly reflects a rather fascinating inconsistency in Zverev, despite the sand which accumulates at the bottom of the bottle. Aside from the first round against Rafael Nadal – where he undoubtedly knew that the slightest lapse in concentration could be costly if he let Manacor’s competitive beast get a toe in the door – he has in every round signed sawtooth performances.
He won 22 of his 24 tie-breaks played at Roland Garros
Yesterday, he experienced fewer lows than against Griekspoor but he only showed his best face intermittently. Namely during a second set flown 6-1, where he was in complete control, aggressive at the net and from the baseline, with an intensity and weight on the ball worthy of his status. Then in the money-time: this tie-break of the 4th set once again very high-flying where he missed nothing (7-2), before finishing the job cleanly in the fifth (6-2) where he makes “maturity” speak, finally using the pieces of its puzzle at the same time. This is the second lesson of this repetitive scenario: the tall blond may take detours, he ends up being present in these burning moments – with, it must be emphasized, an ability to maintain a certain calm in his game despite always a few gestures of annoyance on this or that disputed point. The proof with this other incredible stat: yesterday he won his 22nd decisive game out of the 24 he has played at Roland since the start of his career…
Quarter-finalist at Roland for the last two years, Rune has little to regret. At 21 years old, the Dane played the match he needed, breaking the rhythm and legs of his elder brother with his mix of explosive play and drop shots thrown in handfuls. They earned him a battery of points in the first sets, before Zverev gradually took the measure, advanced a few meters on the court and took the upper hand in the mano a mano. But the quality of the 13th in the world in serving, in return, in long sequences, bodes well for him in the future. ” What a game ! whispered Zverev on the court before heading to the locker room. Holger produced some magnificent tennis. I’m lucky to have escaped. I am proud. Now I need to recover to continue like this. »
This is indeed the question posed by his pace as a senator. In four matches, the German has already spent 13h53′ on the courts. If he finally wants to break his glass ceiling in the semi-finals, he would be wise to take a few shortcuts against Alex De Minaur, his next opponent in the quarters. Because in terms of the game, provided that he no longer plays too much with fire and knows how to take out his cartridges when necessary, the winner of Rome confirms that he has everything he needs this year to finally open his Major prize list.
2024-06-04 00:46:53
#Alexander #Zverev #wins #sets #Holger #Rune #Roland #Garros
