French Open SF: After losing to Novak Djokovic in the French Open semifinal, last year’s finalist Alexander Zverev reflected on defeat to three-time Roland Garros champion and called the Serbian great an “underrated player”.
The 24-time major champion Djokovic, who has suffered consecutive opening-round defeats to start the clay-court swing, has rediscovered his best form at the perfect time in his quest for a record 25th major trophy.
The sixth seed Serbian did not arrive in Paris as the leading favourite, but delivered a tactically astute display to prevail 4-6, 6-3, 6-2, 6-4 and reach a record-extending 51st Grand Slam semi-final.
“I think at the moment he’s a bit underrated, to be honest,” Zverev said of Djokovic. “Funny that you say that, but I think like a lot of people count him out already, but this year he’s had wins over Carlos at the Australian Open, he has had a win over me at the French Open. Forget the age. I think for any player, those are pretty good results. He’s still beating the best of the best, So I think everybody needs to respect that,” Zverev was quoted by ATP Tour.
The last time Djokovic faced Zverev, he was walking off the court solemnly after injury put a premature end to their Australian Open semifinal in January.
But on Wednesday night in Paris — after more than three hours of battle on court Philippe-Chatrier — the 24-time Grand Slam champion rallied from a set behind to keep his quest for a record-setting 25th Grand Slam title going into the semifinals.
“He’s won 24 of these things. I think, yes, I expected him to be able to play like this. I have not seen him play like this this year yet. I think it was very, very high level from him. It was at some point difficult for me. I mean, in the first set when the sun was not completely down, there was still some heat on the court. I could still, I felt like, hit some winners and do some damage with my serve. Then later on when it got really, really cold, I couldn’t really do much,” Zverev added.
But on Wednesday night in Paris — after more than three hours of battle on court Philippe-Chatrier — the 24-time Grand Slam champion rallied from a set behind to keep his quest for a record-setting 25th Grand Slam title going into the semifinals.
Article Source: IANS