ATP Finals in Turin: Zverev fails against Medvedev and is now worried about progressing
Bitter defeat for Alexander Zverev at the ATP Finals. Daniil Medvedev beats Germany’s number one in two sets and is in the semi-finals. Zverev now needs a win in his final group game on Friday to advance. The match to read.
Medvedev beats Zverev in straight sets
The essentials in brief: Alexander Zverev missed his first chance for a semi-final ticket at the ATP Finals. The 26-year-old Olympic champion from Hamburg lost to the Russian Daniil Medvedev 6:7 (7:9), 4:6 in his second group game at the prestigious end of the year. With a win in the third group game, the German number one can still reach the semi-finals.
Zverev will then face Andrej Rublev, who was eliminated after a 5:7, 2:6 defeat against Wimbledon winner Carlos Alcaraz. Alcaraz, whom Zverev defeated in three sets at the start in Turin, is now competing with Zverev for a place in the semi-finals. The Spaniards still has to play against Medvedev, who has already made it to the knockout phase.
For the top German player Zverev, who won the tournament in 2018 and 2021, Medvedev remains a kind of feared opponent. It was his fifth defeat in the sixth meeting with the Muscovite this year.
ATP Finals in Turin: Particularly explosive between Zverev and Medvedev
Alexander Zverev against Daniil Medvedev – there is hardly a duel more often on the tennis tour. Overall, the German and the Russian already 17 times in a row. The balance is 10:7 in favor of Medvedev. The third in the world rankings was able to win four of the last five duels.
The next meeting is this Wednesday evening at the ATP Finals. Both won their opening games in Turin and with another success they can take a big step towards the semi-finals on Saturday.
Zverev against Medvedev always has a very special explosiveness. Things got very heated between the two, especially after the German’s exit in the round of 16 at the Masters 1000 event in Monte Carlo in April. Zverev called the Russian “the most unfair player” because of some actions on the pitch. Medvedev countered and said smugly that Zverev lived “in his own world.” Afterwards, both of them assured that everything was actually fine between them. But it cannot be denied that both have a special rivalry.
At the ATP Finals in Turin two years ago, Zverev and Medvedev met twice. In the group stage, Medvedev won in three sets, but in the final Zverev prevailed in two sets and won the title for the second time at the annual final of the eight best tennis professionals.
“I always feel like I’m playing against him,” said Zverev about the duel with the world number three, who showed a very strong performance in the win against his compatriot Andrei Rublev on Monday. But Zverev also came up trumps in his three-set win against Wimbledon winner Carlos Alcaraz from Spain. “Of course it was a big victory,” said the 26-year-old.
On Tuesday, Zverev trained normally on the next court in the Pala Alpitour and then signed countless autographs for the fans. The foot he sprained against Alcaraz no longer seemed to be causing him any problems during training.
Alcaraz meanwhile celebrated his first victory at the ATP Finals. Two days after his three-set defeat against Zverev, the tennis professional from Spain beat the Russian Andrei Rublev 7:5, 6:2 in Turin on Wednesday.
With Alcaraz’s victory, Zverev can book his ticket to the semi-finals this Wednesday evening. If the Olympic tennis champion wins against Medvedev from 9 p.m., he will be guaranteed a place in the semi-finals. Otherwise, the decision will be made on Friday, when Zverev plays against Rublev and Alcaraz plays against Medvedev.
The original for this article “Zverev fails because of Medvedev and is now worried about progressing” comes from tennisnet.com.
The post first appeared on www.focus.de
