Alexander Zverev misses a surprise at the ATP tournament in Madrid. The Olympic champion has no chance against top star Carlos Alcaraz.
Alexander Zverev pulled the hairband from his forehead in frustration and ran his hand through his hair thoughtfully, then congratulated his Spanish opponent fairly on the victory. In a duel with top star Carlos Alcaraz, the tennis Olympic champion clearly missed a surprise at the ATP Masters in Madrid – and his limits were shown.
Alcaraz made short work of Zverev in 83 minutes – and was extremely satisfied after his clear 6: 1, 6: 2 victory. “It’s wonderful to play the way I played today, I feel really good,” said the 19-year-old, who meets Russia’s Karen Chachanov in the quarter-finals.
Daniel Altmaier will also start there again. The Kempener provided a ray of hope on Tuesday, defeating the ailing local hero Jaume Munar 6: 3, 6: 0 and reaching the round of the last eight for the first time in a tournament in the highest ATP category.
For Zverev, the path after the first encounter with world number two Alcaraz after his serious ankle injury from the semifinals in Paris 2022 against Rafael Nadal is over. At that time he had landed a statement win against Alcaraz in the quarterfinals.
Zverev will fall out of the top 20 in the world rankings
However, while Zverev then struggled with his injury, the young Spaniard’s development has continued upwards since then. Alcaraz proved that once again on Tuesday. He made the break in Zverev’s first service game and set the tone for the game.
Alcaraz subsequently had little trouble with his German opponent and mercilessly played out his oppressive superiority. Zverev seemed increasingly annoyed, kept shrugging his shoulders or shaking his head in disappointment.
On the arduous path to old class, he has to deal with another disappointment, and Zverev will also leave the top 20 in the world rankings for the first time in six years after the tournament in Madrid. The German number one is also still waiting for success against a world-class opponent this year and has to raise its own level further, especially with a view to the French Open (from May 28th).