Alexander Zverev wasn't happy with the conditions during his third-round match at the 2023 Wimbledon and he spoke about it after the match.
Taking on Matteo Berrettini at Wimbledon is never easy and the 26-year-old German now knows why. The Italian managed to beat Zverev in three sets, despite facing challenging conditions as the former World No. 2 on the ATP Tour later admitted.
The match had to be stopped in the second set, something that the German experienced before, and there were challenges with the conditions before and also after the break. Zverev said, that before the break it was 'ridiculously dark' and that even his opponent was probably influenced by that.
"Well, I think both of us played much better after the break, because it was ridiculously dark before the rain delay. We both were saying that to the umpire, but their plan wasn't to play us till 8:30. I don't know how they wanted to play us more than one hour still."
Once the players returned to the No. 1 Court after the break, there was yet another challenge. After a quick shower, the court was now a bit slippery, so even though with the roof closed and artificial lighting, the conditions were still not ideal.
"Yeah, in the beginning it was a little bit slippery. Then I think it got better. In general I think, apart from my side maybe, the break that I got in the first set, I think that was really bad. Apart from that, I think it was a great match."
Although the match finished in three sets, it was quite close in each one of the sets and that's something also Zverev noticed. The German won 99 points while his opponent triumphed in 102 rallies, showing the small margins that mattered.
"No, I think from my end. It wasn't great. I think the break that I got in the first set was, yeah, it was kind of unforced in a way. Other than that, I think it was a very, very decent match. I lost in three very tight sets. I just looked at the stats. I think I lost only three points, lost three more points than him in the whole match. That just shows that it could have gone both ways, but today in important moments he played better."
While Zverev will now want to prepare for the rest of the season, which will be important for him following a long injury hiatus, his opponent will relish another deep run at Wimbledon while taking on Carlos Alcaraz. The German thinks that Berrettini can succeed and he told it to him also after the match.
"Yes, I expected it, and I told him that he can win the tournament if he plays like this. In my opinion. I mean, of course there is other players that are great. He's playing Alcaraz next. I think he's a great player as well. But if he plays like this, to be honest, he has chances against anybody."
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