"He's definitely a top ten player - at least": McEnroe believes scope is there for Zverev to return to his best

John McEnroe believes that Alexander Zverev has the potential to return to the top 2 and will improve in the coming months.

German tennis player Alexander Zverev had a great 2022 season and reached the world No. 2 ranking after an impressive campaign at the French Open. However, a unfortunate injury forced him to retire in the semifinals against Rafael Nadal, when he was playing a great match in the tie-break of the second set.

An ankle injury caused by a fall kept him out for the rest of the 2022 season and led to a decline in his ranking. By the end of that year, he dropped out of the top 10 for the first time in five years.

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Although Zverev has not yet returned to his usual level and is currently outside the top 20, former world No. 1 John McEnroe commented that 'Sascha' is still one of the best players in the world and has the ability to reclaim his former position:

"He's definitely a top ten player - at least. Before his injury he was number two, so he can come back," McEnroe told Sport Bild. Zverev is currently ranked No. 21 in the world but is likely to improve in the coming months as he has no points to defend due to his lengthy injury layoff,” said McEnroe.

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Zverev had not gone beyond the fourth round of the Australian Open or any Masters 1000 tournaments this year. However, at Roland Garros, he showed signs of regaining his form and once again reached the semifinals of the tournament, where he was defeated by Norway's Casper Ruud:

"I don't think he's back to normal. There's still room for improvement," he added.

“Behind that there are question marks. Can Medvedev and Tsitsipas take the next step? Is Zverev starting to win Grand Slam tournaments?”

Zverev competed in the ATP 500 Halle Open last week and reached the semifinals, defeating Denis Shapovalov, Dominic Thiem, and Nicolas Jarry. However, he was defeated by the eventual champion, Aleksandr Bublik. Wimbledon has historically been the most challenging Grand Slam for 'Sascha,' as he has only reached the fourth round in 2017 and 2021.