Alexander “Sascha” Zverev beat Alex De Minaur in the French Open quarterfinal to get to his fourth consecutive French Open semifinal. It’s also the seventh time he’s played in a Grand Slam semifinal. The French Open semifinal is Alexander Zverev’s second Grand Slam semifinal of the year after losing to Daniil Medvedev in five sets.
The French Open semifinal is Zverev’s third major semifinal of the year, clinching the Italian Open in the process. After three consecutive losses in a French Open semifinal, Zverev would be hoping the fourth time would be the charm. The German has never won a Grand Slam title but came close in 2020 when he lost to Dominic Thiem in the US Open final.
Alexander Zverev’s 2021 French Open Semi-final
Alexander Zverev clashed with Stefano Tsitsipas in his third Grand Slam semifinal. It was his first in the French Open. Sascha was the 6th seed in the tournament and Tsitsipas was the 5th seed.
Zverev had started in a five-set win in the first round against Oscar Otte. In the second round, he beat Roman Safiullin in straight sets. The first and third sets needed a tiebreak to separate them. The next two games for Zverev against Laslo Djere, Kei Nishikori, and Alejandro Davidovich Fokina were relatively more straightforward.
In the semifinal against Tsitsipas, he won three of six break points across five sets. He also faced 14 breakpoints from the Greeks and saved nine of them. Alexander Zverev won 11 points from aces, but the seven of them he lost to double faults were part of his downfall.
Major Injury Leads To Semifinal Retirement
Alexander Zverev started the 2022 French Open against Sebastian Ofner. After the straight-sets win against the qualifier, Zverev clashed with Sebastian Baez in the second round. The Argentine was very close to a massive upset, winning the first two sets against the 3rd seed.
In the third round, Brandon Nakashima dragged Alexander Zverev to a tiebreak in the first and third sets, but the German won in straight sets. In the fourth round, he played a 24-point tiebreak with Bernabé Zapata Miralles before going on to win the next two sets.
In the quarterfinals, Zverev faced 6th seed, Carlos Alcaraz, and dropped a set for the first time since Sebastian Baez. After a four-set win, he clashed with 14-time champion and eventual winner, Rafael Nadal. Zverev lost the first set in a tiebreak but had to retire from a major injury after dragging Nadal to a second set tiebreak.
2023: A Year Of Recovery
2023 was mostly a recovery year for Alexander Zverev after falling into a major ankle injury that led to him being taken off the court in the 2022 French Open semifinal against Nadal in a wheelchair.
Alexander Zverev had missed out on the Wimbledon and US Open of 2022 due to an injury but returned in the Australian Open in 2023. He lost in the second round. By the time he got seeded 22nd in the French Open, he had gotten to the fourth round of three of five Masters 1000 tournaments.
Alexander Zverev dropped two sets in the 2023 French Open until he met Casper Ruud in the semifinal. Ruud defeated him in straight sets but lost to Novak Djokovic in the final. After the French Open, Zverev went on to win the Hamburg Open and the Chengdu Open.
Also Read: Alexander Zverev’s Victory Over Australian Star Takes Him To 4th Successive French Open Semi-final
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Ebenezer has been an avid writer for over a decade and a half. Within that period, he garnered experience in various fields such as editing, graphics design, transcribing, sales, data analysis, and football management. He’s also the author of the mystery thriller novel “The Eye of Ra.” For more articles by Ebenezer Ugorji, click here and here!
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