"After the US Open, I had one day off in total" - Alexander Zverev admitted he 'overachieved' in Shanghai as match tally reaches breaking point

Alexander Zverev's semi-final defeat at the Shanghai Masters against eventual champion Alejandro Davidovich Fokina. It seems that the German had reached his limit in terms of matches played with the Asian swing culminating a very busy period.

Following his run to the final of Wimbledon, disappointing early exits in Canada and Cincinnati were followed by that triumphant title run at the US Open. Zverev was not wanting to sit around and rest, going straight to Germany to compete for his country in the Davis Cup qualifiers.

He would then traverse to London to compete at the Laver Cup before going to the other side of the world for more action in China. It was relentless for the soon-to-be World No.1. He lost to Novak Djokovic in the quarter-finals of the China Open before being on the receiving end of that last-four loss to Davidovich Fokina.

The two-time Grand Slam champion is set to next compete at the Vienna Open, commencing from October 26. He has a week to rest, but with the Paris Masters and ATP Finals also coming up, there is still a lot of tennis for Zverev to play.

Zverev was candid after the defeat in Shanghai, admitting that he even 'overachieved' following the number of matches he played. Zverev was also struggling at times with his fitness, and it proved to be costly at the end.

"I feel like I've actually, in a way, maybe overachieved this week because of how much tennis I played," Zverev said. "I carried a little bit of injury, I carried fatigue into the tournament, and I'm OK to lose to a player like this today."

He was adamant that he was still human, despite his recent great form. The fatigue had risen, and it got to a point where he had to succumb to it.

"First, I'm not a robot, I'm a human being, I get tired," Zverev continued. "After the US Open, I had one day off in total. I think I played a lot of tennis, which is very, very positive because that means I played well. I think even here I had tough matches. I personally feel like I was quite flat since the Bublik match, because I was losing energy."

His match in the quarter-finals against Alex de Minaur was one of his best in the tournament, but he could not produce that level against his Spanish foe. "I played a phenomenal match against Alex de Minaur, but today I was flat. Even in the first set, even though I won the set, I was flatter, I was not reacting so well. I was returning quite badly. We're all human beings, even the best players in the world."

It is yet to be seen where Zverev next competes. He could choose to have a longer period away from the court if he chooses to skip Vienna. He will be guaranteed the No.1 spot in the rankings with Paris and most importantly, the ATP Finals taking priority.