Melbourne [Australia], January 26 : Following his loss to Jannik Sinner in the finals of the Australian Open, German tennis star Alexander Zverev compared the Italian star to Serbian Tennis icon Novak Djokovic and said that the three-time Grand Slam champion told him that he would get to win a major title in his career.
Sinner secured back-to-back Australian Open titles on Sunday, defeating Alexander Zverev in a hard-hitting title clash in Melbourne, becoming the first player from his country to secure three Grand Slam titles. Sinner downed Zverev by 6-3, 7-6(4), 6-3 in a two-hour, 42-minute final in which he did not face even a single break point. He managed to defend the title which he had won last year.
While there were moments of genius from Zverev, as he came within two points of winning the second set his wait for a major title will continue further. Zverev faces a 0-3 loss record in Grand Slam finals. The world number two came close to becoming the fifth player from Germany to win a Grand Slam but left the court with many questions in his mind and tears in his eyes.
Sinner, after having won the Australian Open and US Open last year, is on a memorable 21-match winning streak at the hard-court Grand Slams. He is the fifth player in the Open Era to have won three successive Grand Slam titles, and the first since Novak Djokovic in 2015-16, as per ATP's official website. He restricted Zverev's attacking game and was imperious behind serve in the first set, winning 85 per cent of points behind his first delivery. This caused a loss of rhythm to Zverev who faced immense pressure even while delivering his technically sound and brilliant serves.
Speaking after the match as quoted by ATP's official website, Zverev shared the similarities between Sinner and Djokovic's game, saying, "He is very, very similar to Novak when he was at his best. They barely miss. They make you think you have to overhit all the time to have a chance in a rally against them."
"It is very, very difficult to win a point from the back of the court against them, against Novak and him. They move tremendously. They are constantly on the baseline. They do not give you any space. They do not give you any time. Yeah, I mean, just right now too good for me," he added.
Speaking about his loss, Zverev admitted that he was "quite down and emotional"
"He (Sinner) said that I would definitely lift one of those trophies in my career. I am too good not to. That is his words."
"It was a little bit of a tough moment for me because I really went in the final and also the preparation today, I really thought I had a very good chance because I was feeling good. I was feeling the ball quite well. I was feeling like I can compete. It was just a difficult moment for me. I mean, now for the third time, seeing somebody lift the trophy, me standing next to that is difficult because there is nothing more I want than to be able to hold one of those trophies in my hands," he added.
Zverev said that he is doing all he can, working hard as much as possible to win his maiden Grand Slam.
"I think I am doing all the right things off the court. I think I am doing the right things, but I lost in straight sets today. I mean, those are facts. That is a fact. I lost to Jannik in straight sets today," he said.
"I do not want to end my career as the best player of all time to never win a Grand Slam, that is for sure. I will keep doing everything I can to lift one of those trophies," he added.
Zverev admitted being "completely outplayed" by Sinner and only has an advantage over the champion on his serve.
"He does everything else better than me. He moves better than me. He hits his forehand better than me. He hits his backhand better than me. He returns better than me. He volleys better than me. At the end of the day, tennis has five or six massive shots, like massive factors, and he does four or five of them better than me. That's the reason why he won. He deserved to win today," concluded Zverev.