Tennis legend pleads for changes
“In the same leader”: Becker criticizes Zverev
06.06.2025 – 8:05 a.m.Reading time: 2 min.
Does Alexander Zverev need a new trainer? If it goes to Boris Becker, the answer is clear.
According to Becker, Zverev had rely too much on a retracted game against the top players. “You have the impression that he plays against the top players in the same trott and hopes that the result will be good,” said Becker after Zverev’s defeat against Novak Djokovic. That is rich against players outside the top ten, but not for victories against the top of the world. “You have to develop further against the upper five.”
According to Becker, a change in the coaching staff is necessary to go this development step. “At some point you need new noises and a new environment,” said Becker. He made a comparison to football: there too, it was unusual that a trainer stayed with a club for a decade.
Zverev’s sporting environment is closely linked to the family. He is trained by his father Alexander Senior, management takes over his brother Mischa. Becker emphasized that the two had “done that excellently”. However, that is not enough for the last step. In the previous career, Zverev already had well -known coaches like Ivan Lendl, Juan Carlos Ferrero, David Ferrer and Sergi Bruguera at his side – the father always remained part of the team. Becker sees a problem in this: “And I think there will be no new one in this constellation,” he said, pleading for a clear cut.
Becker now sees Zverev’s responsibility. The question is, “What does Sascha want?” Becker left open whether he was satisfied with what was achieved or “turns everything upside down” in order to get his first Grand Slam title. He describes himself as a friend of the family – that’s precisely why his words should have weight.