Australian Open: Alexander Zverev dampens expectations
Alexander Zverev is looking forward to his Grand Slam comeback. Boris Becker has quite a lot of confidence in him. But the Olympic champion curbs expectations.
by SID
last edit:
Jan 14, 2023, 07:17 am
The way back will be long and bumpy, hardly anyone knows that better than Alexander Zverev himself. After his month-long injury break, he was miles away from being the favorite at the Australian Open. The once high demands have shrunk, Zverev is asking for patience. "It will just take time," said the Olympic champion before his opening match on Tuesday of the FAZ.
"You can't just come back after seven months after a serious injury and continue playing like before under match pressure," explained Zverev. With more training sessions, with more match practice, he is sure that his overall form will become "more stable". But the former world number two is still wobbling. Not just on serve. Zverev admits that it was "a catastrophe" recently.
Becker has confidence in Zverev
He therefore needs the match against the Peruvian Juan Pablo Varillas, who slipped into the main draw as a lucky loser, "to get in". An opinion shared by Boris Becker. "Now it has to be about surviving the first lap as well as possible and without an accident. Only then does he know 100 percent where he is," said the former Melbourne champion and current Eurosport expert before the start.
Zverev clearly lost the previous two matches this January against the Czech Jiri Lehecka and the American Taylor Fritz as part of the United Cup. A clear indication that returning to old strength after the ankle injury requires perseverance. Zverev has to factor in setbacks and defeats, the time when he and his environment always expected the biggest titles is over.
Sergi Bruguera as coach
And yet Becker believes his successor can take a few steps forward in Melbourne. "We will see a better Zverev from set to set," he said. Davis Cup team boss Michael Kohlmann is already speculating in an interview with SID: "If the first win comes in and a few things work on their own, then I think you can talk about other things again."
Zverev will be accompanied on his comeback, just like before his injury, by the Spaniard Sergi Bruguera, who leads the training in Melbourne with Zverev's father Alexander senior. From March to May 2022, until the fatal injury in the Roland Garros semifinals against Rafael Nadal, Bruguera was already part of the team. "And there was no reason to change anything," said Zverev.
Australia just the beginning
A decision that Becker expressly praises. "I think it's good that Sascha realized that he needed a coach. His father will always be the 'over-trainer', but he made good decisions," said the Australian Open champion from 1991 and 1996: "In the past Spring in Miami Sascha and Sergi started together and the clay court season after that was excellent."
Bruguera is "an absolute expert, one of my generation. He is a great coach, especially for slower surfaces, be it on sand or on corresponding hard courts - and the right choice for Sascha." A choice that can pay dividends on the European clay courts in the spring. Until then, Zverev needs patience. Australia is just the beginning of its long journey back to the top.
Bruguera there