Stefanos Tsitsipas and Alexander Zverev seem to be poised to have one of the spiciest rivalries in tennis in the next few years. Recently, the world no.7 said that it was unfair that Roger Federer was ranked higher than him since the 20-time slam champion barely played for more than 1 year. This situation developed after the ATP decided to freeze the points because of the difficulties of traveling during the pandemic.
Tsitsipas was asked to give his opinion about Zverev’s statement. The world no.6 tried to see the big picture to comment:
“I understand his point, but the ranking system is as it is and we (the players) do not have much decision about it. I understand that some players have been negatively affected by the way we are playing in the pandemic, but it is something that has affected everyone.”
Tsitsipas and Zverev are the top2 seeds in Acapulco. Stefanos will take on Benoit Paire in his opening match, while Zverev already defeated Carlos Alcaraz Garfia 6-3 6-1.
Stefanos Tsitsipas in 2021
Ranked world no.5 (career-high), Stefanos played his last match on the 12th of March when he lost to Pierre-Hugues Herbert 6-7(6) 6-4 6-2 in the quarter in Marseille (draw).
At present, during this year Stefanos owns a 10-3 match record. Stefanos Tsitsipas’s best performance of the year was getting to the semifinal at the Australian Open and Rotterdam.
Zverev in Acapulco, ranking, and results in 2021
Now the world no.7, Alexander has achieved an overall 6-4 match record in 2021. Zverev is playing in Acapulco where he conquered Carlos Alcaraz Garfia 6-3 6-1.
Alexander Zverev will square off with Djere in the 2nd round. In the past, they have never competed against each other until now on the main tour.
Alexander won 13 titles in his career: 3 on hard courts, 5 on clay courts and 5 on indoor courts. (See the list of his titles)
Stefanos Tsitsipas and Alexander Zverev clashed against each other 6 times. Their head to head is 5-1 for Tsitsipas. Previously, the last time when they squared off, Stefanos Tsitsipas won 6-1 6-4 in the round robin in Brisbane, Perth, Sydney (ATP Cup) in January 2020.
In the following video you can watch the key moments of their match.
Roger Federer in 2021
Ranked no.6, the Swiss played his last match on the 11th of March when he was overcome by Nikoloz Basilashvili 3-6 6-1 7-5 in the quarter in Doha (draw).
This year Federer has a 1-1 win-loss record.
