'Worst World No. 2 Ever': Alexander Zverev Delivers Response To His Critics
NewsWednesday, 07 May 2025 at 16:29
Alexander Zverev couldn't reach the World No. 1 rank during Jannik Sinner's three-month suspension, but he isn't bothered by any criticism he received because of it.
Both Zverev and Carlos Alcaraz were presented with a unique opportunity to reach the World No. 1 rank after the current No. 1 player, Jannik Sinner, was suspended from competing for three months.
Not only was the Italian player not able to add any points to his total during a period of three months, but he also lost the points that he earned during that period last year.
That meant that despite trailing Sinner quite a lot at the start of his suspension, Zverev and Alcaraz had plenty of chances to overtake him, but three months later, they are both quite far from the Italian, who will return to action in Rome.
Speaking to the media ahead of the ATP Masters 1000 tournament in Rome, Zverev was again asked about the World No. 1 ranking. The German player admitted that he believes he will one day reach the top spot.
"World No. 1? It would be nice. I don't know. I have not been there. I believe I will. So we'll see how it goes."
At the same time, Zverev hit back at his critics. He feels like, because of his recent struggles, everyone portrays him as the worst World No. 2 player ever, simply because he wasn't able to overtake Sinner.
"I do think the media also loves to put players down, right? I had a bad two months before Munich, right? I didn't play great tennis before Munich. All of a sudden I'm like the worst world No. 2 in the world ever. I don't deserve to be there."
Zverev reminded those criticizing him that, in fact, he is the World No. 2 player because of his results. Although he couldn't reach the top spot, according to the current ranking system, he deserved to be the No. 2 player.
"Like, I'm there because I won tournaments. I'm there because I have results. The ranking system doesn't lie. You get points for winning matches, you get points for winning titles. Yes, I know I didn't play up to my standard. I know I didn't play up to what I wanted to do."
Zverev also mentioned that he isn't the only one who has struggled recently. Alcaraz and Novak Djokovic have struggled to produce desired results.
"But neither did Carlos. Then he won Monte-Carlo. There are periods in a player's career... Do you think Novak is happy with his results? Do you think Carlos is happy with his results? I'm not happy with my results."
"At the end of the day in big matches, big moments, I still believe the top players will rise. And I still believe that I am going to find my tennis for the biggest tournaments."
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