As of: January 26, 2024 3:23 p.m
Olympic tennis champion Alexander Zverev dramatically missed the Australian Open final. The Hamburger lost his semi-final against the Russian Daniil Medvedev on Friday with 7:5, 6:3, 6:7 (4:7), 6:7 (5:7), 3:6 and has to go on to the first Grand Slam title of his career awaits.
Zverev showed an outstanding performance in the first four sets in the Rod Laver Arena and in the 19th duel with Medvedev he already had victory in the fourth round in sight when he led 5:4 in the tiebreak on his own serve and only two points needed to reach the final. In the end, the 26-year-old failed due to his nerves and an increasingly strong opponent.
Medvedev will now face South Tyrolean Jannik Sinner in the final on Sunday. The 22-year-old had previously thrown Grand Slam record champion and defending champion Novak Djokovic out of the tournament 6:1, 6:2, 6:7 (6:8), 6:3.
Zverev weakened by feverish cold
For Zverev, only the role of spectator remains at the final. “It’s extremely frustrating. But mainly because I didn’t feel 100 percent good,” said the Hamburg resident. He explained that he developed a feverish cold overnight. “I lost my energy at the end of the second set and didn’t feel fresh anymore,” Zverev complained, but then looked positively into the future: “I’m sure: if I do the right things, I’ll get another chance like that .”
Image gallery
Alexander “Sascha” Zverev is Germany’s best tennis player. The career of the Olympic champion from Hamburg in pictures. Image gallery
Hard-fought first set lasts 70 minutes
Zverev started the game furiously. He broke Medvedev twice and led 4:1. But then the Russian stabilized in a thrilling and high-class game. The world number three took the Hamburger’s serve twice and equalized 5:5. While the encounter had already captivated the spectators, they were now treated to rallies that deserved the title “absolutely world class”.
Zverev and Medvedev didn’t lose a point. The best example of this was the first set ball for the Olympic champion, which was preceded by a total of 51 strokes. Zverev certainly converted him. He had previously broken the Russian for the third time. Round one lasted no less than 70 minutes.
Zverev with strong performance at the net
The Hamburg player continued to play at a very high level in the second half. When the score was 2:2 he managed the first break, and with his own lead of 5:3 he took the service from the Russian again. His stability at the net was particularly crucial for the 2-0 set lead. There he had a strong point rate of 81 percent before the start of the third round.
Medvedev more aggressive from the third set onwards
Medvedev, who took a toilet break before the start of the third set, had to think of something to throw Zverev out of his rhythm. And that’s what the 27-year-old did. From then on he played more aggressively than before, scored more direct points and forced a few mistakes from Zverev. However, the Hamburg player was unimpressed by his opponent’s modified playing style. He responded to the Russian’s bolder demeanor with a brilliant serve game to take a 3-2 lead, which he won to nil.
When the score was 4:4, the 26-year-old had to fend off a break ball. He showed strong nerves, but then hoped in vain that Medvedev would weaken in his own service. It finally went to a tiebreak. In this one, Zverev was only three points away from victory at 4:4, but then didn’t score any more points, so it went into the fourth set.
Zverev was very close to victory in the fourth section
Known how to improve from the third set: Daniil Medvedev.
Medvedev now had the upper hand. He seemed a little more confident and fresher than Zverev. But the Hamburger fought doggedly and fended off two break points when he was 3:4 behind. The 26-year-old then led 30-0 when the Russian served, but also failed to manage a break. Afterwards both of them completed their service safely. Once again the tiebreak had to decide.
Until the change of sides at 3:3, Zverev and Medvedev showed no weakness in their own serves. The thriller continued unabated. Then the Russian made a double fault at 4:4, giving the Hamburger a great opportunity to make the decision with two of his own serves. He didn’t make it, instead falling behind 5:6 and also losing the fourth round 6:7 after an ace from his opponent. “The two tiebreaks were incredible. I was a bit lucky there too,” said Medvedev.
Lost his nerve at the crucial moment
Almost four hours had already been completed before the start of the fifth section. The course of the game now spoke more in favor of a victory for Medvedev, who initially fought back with a lot of energy and will and then narrowly avoided defeat twice.
And the Russian now also benefited from the fact that Zverev lost his nerve on his own serve when the score was 2-2. After the Hamburg player made a slight mistake at 15:30, he hit his racket twice on the net in frustration. For this he received a warning, which led to 15:40.
Zverev was able to equalize again, but Medvedev then used the third break point to take the lead 3-2. Afterwards, the hamburger’s morale was broken. After 4:18 hours his exit in Melbourne was sealed. The Olympic champion will remember one of the bitterest defeats of his career for a long time. “But I can also be proud of myself, I did everything I could,” said Zverev.
Further information
The tennis professional from Hamburg showed his best tournament performance to date in the four-set win against the Spaniard and can continue to dream of his first Grand Slam triumph. more
The Olympic tennis champion is to pay a fine of 450,000 euros for bodily harm. Because he has lodged an objection against this, a trial is now taking place. more
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Current | 01/26/2024 | 12:00 o’clock
Keywords for this article
Tennis
2024-01-26 14:23:00
#Defeat #Medvedev #Zverev #misses #Australian #Open #final #NDR.de #Sports
