"Novak wasn't vaccinated, Rafa got hurt": Alexander Zverev still harbours resentment from missed World No.1 chance
ATP
Alexander Zverev may have ascended back into contention at the top of the tennis tree and also got injured in between but he still admitted to harbouring resentment from being so close to reaching the ultimate goal of World No.1 two years ago.
Zverev has been superb and back towards his best in 2024 having won two Masters 1000 titles and having a win/loss record of 66/20 thus far and has leapfrogged Carlos Alcaraz into World No.2. He won the Paris Masters this past weekend and has been a force to be reckoned with again.
Albeit by his own admission he still sits well behind a certain Jannik Sinner at the top of the tree. But with the benefit of hindsight he said that he missed his chance back in 2022 to become World No.1.
He cited the fact that both Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic were hampered with Novak unable to play due to vaccination trouble while Nadal got injured and it started to be the beginning of the end. But a golden opportunity was let slip by his own injury travails.
"I think it's very difficult to be World No. 1 without winning a slam.I had the chance in 2022 if I would have not gotten injured, so that's rare, because there it was still special occasions," Zverev said after winning Paris.
"There, obviously Novak didn't play a lot of events because he wasn't vaccinated. Rafa started the year very strong and got a bit hurt. It was a weird year."
"It was not like everybody was playing all the tournaments and they were in full strength all the tournaments. So it was different.
"But I think now when everybody is playing and everybody is playing at full strength and everybody is healthy, you have to win Grand Slams to become World No. 1. I'm World No. 2 now, but I'm 3,000 points away from Jannik, more or less, maybe more even."
Samuel GillEditor-in-Chief
Samuel Gill is the Chief Content Officer (CCO) of TennisUpToDate.com, a role he has held since 2020. He is responsible for editorial governance across the platform, including setting content standards, overseeing accuracy and consistency, and guiding long-term editorial strategy. Since joining, he has contributed more than 10,000 articles and editorial pieces across the TennisUpToDate network, playing a central role in the daily operation and development of the site.
Based in Leicester, Samuel has a broad background in tennis media. In his current role, he works closely with editors and writers to ensure coverage meets clear journalistic standards, with particular attention to verification, consistency, and timely updates when new information becomes available.
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