On the way to the interview zone in front of the tennis stadium in the Ariake Tennis Park, Alexander Zverev wiped the last tears from his face. Where journalists wrestle emotions from athletes behind metal bars, his eyes wet again when he was asked to describe his inner life after the sensation in Tokyo. The 24-year-old from Hamburg had demystified the almost indomitable number one in the tennis world, the Serb Novak Djokovic, with 1: 6, 6: 3, 6: 1 in the Olympic semifinals and destroyed his dream of the Golden Slam. Zverev last won a win against the “Djoker” three years ago at the World Cup final in London. The dimension for him this time was a different one, a very special one.
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“I have now won a medal for Germany, and that at the Olympics. It’s an incredible feeling. You not only play here for yourself and your family, you play for everyone, the athletes in the village, the people who watch at home, for the country in general. At that moment there were a lot of emotions for me. “ He had to cope with that after the thrilling 2:03 hours, and buried his face in the towel for several minutes, crying. “I hope nobody saw that,” he later laughed and told the less than ten German journalists who were present.
Olympic final against Karen Khachanov will be “not an easy match”
This means that Zverev has secured the first individual medal since Tommy Haas won silver 21 years ago – and will reach for gold in the final against Russian surprise finalist Karen Khachanov on Sunday. But Zverev wants more. “At the end of the day, my greatest motivation is to get the medal – and hopefully gold,” he said the day before. “Karen is in the final because he’s been playing amazing tennis this week. He is in awesome shape, “said Zverev about his next opponent. “It won’t be an easy match, no matter who is where in the ranking.”
After the first set, in which Zverev played not badly, it didn’t look like it. Djokovic reeled off his match schedule with the precision of a Swiss watch. Just like he always does. That annoyed the hamburger so much that he only threw the bat in the second set and after the Serbian break, he shot a ball out of the stadium to make it 2: 3. A tantrum as a chest reliever. Because then he managed to equalize the sentences with a series of 12: 1 points and let the Serbian “Mr. Cool ”also in the third no longer off the hook. World class tennis. “Sascha then let go. He risked even more to overcome himself. Novak didn’t expect that and felt the pressure, ”explained coach Michael Kohlmann. Zverev knew that he had to change something. “That’s why I’m more on the ball, played with more feeling, swung more.” For Kohlmann, the key moment was the 2-0 lead in the third set. “After that, Novak had stress.”
Zverev spoils Djokovic the Golden Slam
By the way, Zverev spoiled the Serbian Golden Slam. Stefanie Graf remains alone with this performance in professional tennis. In 1988 she had won all four Grand Slam tournaments and Olympic gold. Djokovic was well on his way this year after winning the Australian Open, the French Open and Wimbledon. But then Zverev came. “Sorry,” he apologized, “but I just wanted to go to the final.”
For Zverev, Olympia is now the biggest sporting event in the world, “and the tennis players who have never been to the Olympics and say that the Olympics are not important, they have to go to the Olympics once and then they will see it differently”. A swipe at the professionals who stayed away from Tokyo and the games. Zverev was previously also someone for whom a Grand Slam was more important. He corrected himself: “You are not playing for yourself, that is why it is so special. It’s an unbelievable feeling. “So unbelievable that for the tennis millionaire an Olympic victory is everything:” At the moment it means more to me than one at Wimbledon. “
