Alexander Zverev ousted at Halle Open, coming weeks remain uncertain
By Harry Floyd
Alexander Zverev is ousted at the 2018 Halle Open. The ATP tournament’s second seed could still be struggling due to injury.
German tennis star Alexander Zverev is knocked out of the 2018 Halle Open at the hands of Borna Ćorić. The young Croatian tennis player completed the upset in straight sets over the world number three. Ćorić takes the meeting, winning 6-1 6-4.
Other top seeds are already advancing at the ATP World Tour 500 series event. Roger Federer is among the early winners. Federer is also a nine-time champion in men’s singles at the event. He ought to be considered the heavy favorite moving forward. Zverev was the back-to-back runner-up at the event coming into play this year.
More from Lob and Smash
- Caroline Wozniacki gets her wild card for the Australian Open
- Tennis News: Rafael Nadal, Emma Raducanu and protected rankings
- Martina Navratilova: Money lost by coming out was in the ‘millions’
- Tennis News: Novak Djokovic, Nick Kyrgios and Matteo Berrettini
- Boris Becker and Rick Macci bicker over Carlos Alcaraz
Federer is fresh off of a title-win at the Stuttgart Open. He is returning after his absence during the clay court season where Rafael Nadal emerged per usual. The King of Clay is once again the champion at the French Open. He defeats up and coming tennis star Dominic Thiem in the finals. It was Thiem, however, who may have revealed the current issues surrounding Zverev. The young German fell in straight sets during his quarterfinals match with Thiem.
Alexander Zverev falls 6-4 6-2 6-1 to Dominic Thiem in the French Open quarterfinals. A hamstring injury bested the rising German tennis star and it could still be bothering him.
Questions surround Zverev as we head toward action at Wimbledon. His early exit from the Halle Open is not indicative of his bouncing back to full strength after his French Open loss. While his injury might be minor, it could be just enough to keep him from competing at a high level on the ATP World Tour. With players such as Thiem and Federer surging as of late, any mishap can set back even the best of players.
Men’s singles tennis is seeing fantastic veteran greats be challenged by rising stars. Normally, Alexander Zverev is one of those stars. His two titles on the year combined with his overall stellar singles play have launched him into the world number three ranking. His Halle Open loss raises questions though and fans and players must wait to see how he fares in the coming weeks. Last year, he reached the fourth round of play at Wimbledon.