STUTTGART, June 9, 2025
Alexander Zverev returns to the Tennis Club Weissenhof after six years – and now hopes to finally make a strong statement on Stuttgart’s grass. At the BOSS OPEN, Germany’s No. 1 is competing for the fourth time overall, but his record in the Baden-Württemberg capital leaves room for improvement: his only win came in 2015 against then-World No. 404 Mate Pavic, before he lost to Viktor Troicki. The year before – when the tournament was still played on clay – he fell to Lukas Rosol, and in 2019, his most recent appearance, he also bowed out after his first match.
Before his first practice session on Monday, Zverev showed up to his press conference in a fitting green shirt. “I’ve always been given the chance to play here. I’m grateful for that. I haven’t been here for a while because I had good results in Paris. That’s a good reason, I think. I really like this tournament and I’m happy to be back. I’ll give everything to be successful.
“Last year, I played the best grass-court tennis of my career so far. I’m happy to be here and want to play good tennis right away, but I’ll need a few practice days. It’s been a while, but the facility is still beautiful. The anticipation from the fans is huge and hopefully it’ll be a great week.”
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Zverev responds to Becker criticism
After his loss in Paris, Zverev flew straight to Mallorca, played a few rounds of golf and stayed there until Monday morning. He remained relaxed when responding to the criticism he faced following his defeat to Novak Djokovic at Roland-Garros – particularly from Boris Becker: “When things aren’t going well for me, everyone suddenly gets very smart. Unfortunately, that includes Boris. I came back from injury to reach World No. 2. I still see myself as a contender to face the two guys at the top. Even if it wasn’t my best match – I lost to Djokovic, not to Hanspeter ranked 250 in the world.”
As for Boris, who is also expected at the Tennis Club Weissenhof on Tuesday, Zverev said the door remains open: “I’ll always talk to him if he wants to talk. There are always topics to disagree on. I have huge respect and will always listen to what he has to say – but I don’t always have to agree with him.”
Tricky opening opponents
In Stuttgart, Zverev’s opening match will be against either Fabio Fognini or Corentin Moutet. “That will definitely be interesting. I’ll try to prepare as best I can in the short time I have,” he said of his upcoming task.
As is the case every season, some players will be stepping onto grass for the first time in their careers. What advice would Zverev give them? “That they should ask someone else. Because I’m the wrong person for that,” he said with a laugh.
