The DJ plays “Ni ** as in Paris” by Jay-Z and Kanye West. Party guests dance without observing distance rules. The camera pans out onto the Mediterranean Sea. Few would have heard of this celebration on Sunday at the Anjuna Beach Club in Èze, on the Côte d’Azur between Nice and Monaco. But on an Instagram story by fashion designer Philipp Plein there was a party guest who shouldn’t have been there: Alexander Zverev.
The German tennis star is clearly recognizable on a short video clip, but Plein deleted this sequence a little later. American journalist and tennis expert Ben Rothenberg first reported on Zverev’s misconduct. At first, it was not certain whether the video was actually recorded on Sunday.
Research by SPIEGEL shows, however, that the party was taking place in Èze at the time and that other guests, who can be seen with Zverev in the video, can be recognized in identical clothes in other photos or videos of that celebration. A SPIEGEL request to the management of the 23-year-old has so far remained unanswered, and he has not commented either. But Zverev will hardly be able to talk himself out of it.
To attend such a party in times of the corona pandemic seems morally doubtful. The timing is also controversial. The notorious Adria Tour ended a little over a week ago. At this show tournament in Serbia and Croatia, spectators were admitted, the main actors around Zverev and co-organizer Novak Djokovic mingled with the people without social distancing – and celebrated a lavish party together as if there were no pandemic.
Various positive test results followed, including tennis players Djokovic, Grigor Dimitrov and Viktor Troicki, but also NBA professional Nikola Jokic or the underage son of a restaurant owner. Zverev himself subsequently published a negative corona test – and apologized. “I will follow the self-isolation guidelines,” he wrote in a message. He did not mention a time period, but 14 days are mandatory after contact with infected people. The Èze party took place six days later.
Rittner on Zverev: “That is irresponsible”
There is a lot at stake for Zverev. He is one of the leaders of the so-called “Next Generation”, which is still in the shadow of Djokovic, Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal, but wants to dominate the tennis world after their resignations. In Germany, where every aspiring tennis player has to endure comparisons with Boris Becker, Zverev has received too little recognition in the past – based on his success. Sometimes he is accused of arrogance, sometimes the missing Grand Slam titles. His previous management accepted this, because internationally Zverev’s perception is significantly more positive.
With the change to Federers agency Team8 last September, the direction should change, more towards Germany. When the right-hander reached the semi-finals for the first time at the Australian Open in January, Zverev also received more recognition in Germany. Then the corona virus and the global tennis circus came to a halt. In August at the earliest it will be played for world ranking points. Until then, there are only show or invitation tournaments like Djokovic’s in Belgrade or from July 13th to 19th in Berlin.
The tournament director there, Barbara Rittner, has a clear stance on what is going on around Zverev: “I am very critical of Alexander Zverev’s behavior,” Rittner told SPIEGEL. “This is irresponsible, disrespectful, ignorant, arrogant and he does not follow his words after the Adriatic Tour.”
While Federer has already ended his season due to a knee surgery and Nadal is also currently not appearing as a tennis player, Zverev makes a double image error within a few days. Djokovic has been diving since the Adriatic tour.
Kyrgios is “pissed off” by the tennis world
It is currently not clear whether he will participate in Berlin as originally planned. “We at Bett1 Aces are discussing this and will certainly discuss it with his management,” says Rittner, who, as Head of Women’s Tennis in Germany, also looks at Zverev’s behavior from the perspective of the German Tennis Federation, without having spoken in this function: “Sascha has a role model function that he needs to be aware of. We’re talking about a clear violation of the rules. I’m not the one who has to point this out to him. That is his environment and his management,” says Rittner.
Zverev is also clearly criticized by Nick Kyrgios. The Australian had clearly positioned himself as one of the few professional colleagues after the Adria Tour – and has now followed suit. On Instagram, the 25-year-old, who has earned a reputation as a riot on the world’s courts in recent years, accused Zverev of selfishness: “I’m pissed off by this tennis world,” says Kyrgios in a video.
But is it really a tennis problem? It would be premature to pillorize an entire sport because of individual misconduct. The Adria Tour by Djokovic, who has already achieved everything in tennis, or Zverev’s party behavior will also have no impact on the return of the sport. According to the organizer, the already strict hygiene concept of the US Open at the end of August may need to be adjusted again.
There is a lot more at stake for Alexander Zverev than for tennis.
