“Extreme insults”
Tennis star Zverev talks about hostility
24.05.2025 – 8:30 a.m.Reading time: 2 min.
He is Germany’s best tennis player. However, Alexander Zverev does not protect this from headwind, as he now explained.
Alexander Zverev is preparing for the French Open in Paris – and speaks openly about a side of everyday tennis, which remains hidden to many: hatred on social networks. Despite over two million followers and professional support for his online channels, the 28-year-old is thoughtful.
“Nowadays, social media is more important than anything else,” said Zverev. At the same time, he spoke of the dark sides. “For us tennis players, the insults that we are exposed to online and on social media are extreme,” he said. It is particularly critical that many of these hostility are not visible to the public – for example because they are done via private or hidden messages.
A current example is his appearance at the home tournament in Hamburg. Zverev had already left the round of 16 there. He was sick, he said, a stomach infection weakened him. “If I had canceled, I would have been accused of a lot,” said Zverev. Then he had been reproached that he would not take the tournament seriously or was only there because of the money.
Now he had to listen to why he played in this state and that he was only looking for excuses. “Tennis has a great culture of blame among fans and also on social media,” he said. The psychological stress is high. “I think it is mentally a very difficult sport for us.”
In Roland Garros, Zverev meets Learner Tien in the first round. Despite the battered form and health problems before the tournament, he is optimistic. Last year he lost the final in Paris in five sets against Carlos Alcaraz. The dream of the first Grand Slam title remains-and the hope that the pressure off the square will not take over.