Alexander Zverev prevailed to advance to the 2023 ATP Finals after suffering an injury in the 2022 Roland Garros semifinal.
The only thing tennis fans could hope for after the German player’s horrific ankle injury in the Roland Garros 2022 semifinal was to see him return to the court as soon as possible. When Zverev returned to the court in 2023, it seemed impossible to win even one game.
However, champions know how to respond when things get tough, and in a matter of months, the German tennis player was able to reclaim his season and earn a spot in the Turin Finals. The 26-year-old German talked about how exciting and unexpected it was to be a part of the world’s top eight year-end tournament during Media Day.
Zverev expressed his thoughts and said: “At the beginning, it was difficult; the idea of being in Turin didn’t even cross my mind. I was thinking more about how to get back to winning matches; I was winning very few of them, and with them, there was also a shortage of points for the ranking. I think the summer was the turning point. I got to the semifinals at Roland Garros, and that was the key moment. From then on, I rediscovered all the pleasure of being on a tennis court.”
He further added: “I’ve learned that you can’t get what you want right away. You need to be patient sometimes and work hard for the goals you really want to achieve. Before the injury, I was so close to becoming No. 1 in the world, but then everything was taken away from me in a heartbeat and afterward, I found myself No. 27 in the world. Being back in the top 8 and being able to take part in this tournament is truly something special.”
Alexander Zverev in 2023
Currently ranked no.7, the German played his last match on the 2nd of November when he was overcome by world no.6 Stefanos Tsitsipas 7-6(2) 6-4 in the 3rd round in Paris (draw).
This year Zverev has an overall 53-26 win-loss record. Zverev conquered 2 titles in 2023 in Hamburg and Chengdu.