Zverev Fires Back at Boris Becker, Says He Talks Nonsense

“I think he, as always, talks relatively a lot of nonsense,” Alexander Zverev said of Boris Becker. “I don’t know what’s going on with him right now, but I have the feeling he has to comment on everything I do,” the new world No. 1 added after his second-round exit at the Paris Masters, as reported by sueddeutsche.de.

The remark is Zverev’s sharpest response yet to a Der Spiegel interview in which Becker, the six-time Grand Slam champion, questioned how warmly the 29-year-old is received in his home country despite his success.

What Becker said in the Spiegel interview

Asked why Zverev’s hearts don’t seem to be “flying to him” in Germany, Becker offered several theories, according to sueddeutsche.de. He said he often finds Zverev abrupt and curt in German-language interviews and “not exactly friendly” toward journalists.

Becker also noted that Zverev’s parents come from Russia and that Zverev speaks Russian on court with his team box, yet does not publicly comment on the war in Ukraine. Becker said he personally could understand that position, “but of course it doesn’t go down well.”

Zverev’s counter on politics and social media

Zverev rejected the suggestion that he should speak out politically. “I found it strange that he thinks I should express myself politically. For whatever reason,” he said, per sueddeutsche.de. “I have a very clear opinion on that. No one has ever asked me about it. I’m not going to go on Instagram and post some comments there. That’s not me, I’ve never done that, I will never do that.”

Zverev disputes Becker’s claim about crowd support

Becker told Der Spiegel that spectators at Zverev’s past three Grand Slam finals were mostly on his opponent’s side. Zverev pushed back with specific numbers: “I found that in Paris 70 percent of the people were for me,” he said. “In Wimbledon I played against Jannik Sinner, it was relatively 50:50.” Only in New York, he added, were fans logically mostly behind the American Ben Shelton.

Zverev emphasized that he had read only small excerpts of Becker’s interview.

The Paris loss that framed the exchange

The comments came after Zverev, who entered the Paris Masters as a second-round seed, lost to Italy’s Lorenzo Musetti 7:6 (7:5), 2:6 in his opening match — his first as world No. 1. He had taken over the top of the ATP rankings on Monday, becoming the first German male player since Becker to do so. ga.de additionally reported that Zverev had narrowly lost the Vienna final to Australia’s Alex de Minaur, missing a chance to enter the final as the new world No. 1 and answer his critics on court.

Where the two Germans disagree

Becker’s interview sketches a figure whose Russian roots, on-court language and silence on the war in Ukraine, combined with a perceived coldness toward German media, keep him from winning German hearts.

What is on record next

Zverev remains the ATP world No. 1 after Monday’s ranking change, but his first match under that status ended in defeat in Paris, and the public dispute with Becker shows no sign of cooling.