After a successful day at work, Alexander Zverev quickly packed his bag and left the tennis arena in the Parque Olimpico without much jubilation. The Olympic champion led the German Davis Cup team to victory in the qualification duel in Brazil. The third in the world rankings also won his second singles on Saturday evening, with the point to 3:1, the selection of the German Tennis Association (DTB) made it into the top 16 teams.
Zverev didn’t let the loud audience in Rio de Janeiro upset him and cleared the last doubts with a 6: 1, 7: 5 against Brazilian number one Thiago Monteiro. Before the decisive match, Kevin Krawietz and Tim Pütz put Captain Michael Kohlmann’s team back in the lead at the start of the second day of competition.
After a hard piece of work, the doubles team won 4: 6, 7: 6 (7: 4), 6: 4 against Felipe Meligeni Alves/Bruno Soares. Krawietz (eight wins) and Pütz (nine wins) are each undefeated in the Davis Cup. “You don’t often play a Davis Cup match like this away in front of so many spectators who are so emotional,” said Krawietz.
Zverev also had to deal with heckling before his serves. He last played in the Davis Cup in 2019 and was now convincing in his first two matches after his much-discussed disqualification in Acapulco. He had to fend off a set ball against Monteiro in the second round and then made everything clear a little later.
He had already lived up to his role as a favorite on Friday evening with a 6: 4, 6: 2 against Thiago Seyboth Wild, but Struff was unable to use the template in the 3: 6, 6: 1, 3: 6 against Monteiro. Ultimately, however, the defeat had no consequences.
It continues with the group phase of the traditional competition in September. The knockout round from the quarter-finals will take place at the end of November, the venues are not yet known. Last year, the DTB selection advanced to the semifinals without Zverev.
Brazil 1-3 Germany
Thiago Seyboth Wild – Alexander Zverev 4: 6, 2: 6
Thiago Monteiro – Jan Lennard Struff 6: 3, 1: 6, 6: 3
Felipe Meligeni Alves/Bruno Soares – Kevin Krawietz/Tim Pütz 6: 4, 6: 7 (4: 7), 4: 6
Thiago Monteiro – Alexander Zverev 1: 6, 5: 7