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.
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.
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.