Alexander Zverev signs up for the Stockholm Open

Tuesday, 16 August 2022 at 06:00

Updated at Friday, 15 November 2024 at 18:46

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byZachary Wimer

Alexander Zverev hasn’t stood on the tennis courts since injuring his ankle at the 2022 Roland Garros, but he seemingly will return to the courts by the end of the year, with the Stockholm Open being the event he signed up for.

It’s been a strange year for Zverev, who was living his best life at the 2022 Roland Garros. He was playing ridiculously good tennis at the event, looking every bit like a potential champion as a tennis player could look.

Unfortunately, disaster struck in the semi-final match with Rafael Nadal as Zverev slipped and injured his ankle badly. The German had to leave the courts on crutches, and pretty soon, the news broke of him having a severe ankle injury.

There was hope that he wouldn’t miss as much time as initially speculated, and that appeared to be more likely as he started his rehabilitation. He was able to progress quickly, and some optimistic prognosis had him possibly ready for the US Open.

Reports indicated that he would take his time and approach the comeback conservatively, so a more likely return seemed like the Davis Cup after the US Open.

Now, it seems likely that he will play at least some tennis this year, as he signed up for more events, becoming the first player to commit to playing in Stockholm this year.

He also signed up for the Japan Open in Tokyo ahead of Stockholm, so it’s clear that Zverev plans to play this year in some capacity. Whether that actually comes true remains to be seen because rehabilitation is a tricky process.

Things can go better than expected, and sometimes, unfortunately, they can also go worse than expected. Setbacks are also common, especially with complicated injuries, but so far, it’s gone really well for Zverev, who hopes to see himself on the courts again this year.