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Indian Wells: Zverev loses thrilling duel against Medvedev – sport

Anyone who has gotten to know Alexander Zverev a little in recent years knows that there is only this one code in his theory of colors after defeats: #000000. Black. There is not a bright spot to be seen, even if the people come almost inspired from the number one stadium of the tennis facility in Indian Wells and declare that they have not seen such a high-class, exciting, dramatic game as that between Zverev and Daniil Medvedev for a long time have: 196 minutes playing time; two tie breaks; Break and re-break at 4:5 and 5:5 in the deciding set; a nasty looking injury to Medvedev; an even more foul tirade from the Russians on this pitch in the California desert; a really brave, agile, playful Zverev – it doesn’t matter, it was: black.

“I’m not interested in anything, I lost,” said Zverev a few minutes after this game in the stadium catacombs, and he also had good reasons for being in a bad mood. Zverev is a professional athlete looking to win, not a champagne-sipping guest looking to be entertained. Not only did he win the first set, he also pissed off Medvedev, who had previously won 16 consecutive matches and won three tournament titles, so much that the Russian threatened to actually climb a palm tree after the first set. “I’m going out now and I’ll take my time,” he snapped half to the referee and half to himself: “It may take a while, you can fine me five times for delaying – I don’t care.”

Medvedev’s displeasure was directed at the really slow surface in Indian Wells. Anyone who has ever hit a few balls there, for example on training ground five, can confirm: A really dull sand court is a nimble run in contrast to the underground in Indian Wells. Medvedev later apologized for his outburst: “I have to work on myself and I’m not just saying that. It’s my fault that I can’t deal with it.” But that didn’t help Zverev. He is making progress in his comeback from a serious injury. But he also lost a game that he should have won.

“I don’t think my career is over yet,” says Zverev

The 25-year-old Olympic champion from Hamburg had won the first set in the tie-break and unnerved Medvedev. In the middle of the second half, the Russian twisted his ankle and thought about giving up: “It really hurt, I had to limp between rallies,” he later reported: “But the game itself went quite well.” Zverev had ten break chances in this round against a rival who was battered and in a bad mood; There were 17 in total in the match. He couldn’t use any in the second set and only two in total. In the third set, Zverev actually made the break to 5: 5 against the otherwise nerve-racking opponent – only to give up his serve immediately afterwards, in the end with a double fault.

Of course you can appreciate the good things on an afternoon like this. But it is also possible to see it like Zverev, who is currently under special observation. On the one hand because of the comeback after the protracted ankle injury, where people are curious to see where he will place himself in the new world elite, in which the well-known names can no longer be found, but: Alcaraz, Fritz, Ruud, Rune. On the other hand, because the Netflix streaming service follows him everywhere in Indian Wells for the second season of the documentary series “Breaking Point”. The title is appropriate because Zverev is at such a point in his career that could be groundbreaking for the future.

“Now there’s another documentary coming,” he says in California. The German TV station RTL will show a film with the title “The Unfinished” in the coming week. Zverev says: “I didn’t choose the name, but I trust people who know how to make and market films. But I’m 25 years old. I don’t think my career is over yet.” He knows exactly what needs to happen now to get where he’s been before, maybe a little higher: “Win. Not just games, but tournaments.” Next chance: Miami, next week, slow hard.

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