HAMBURG/STARNBERG, July 17, 2024
Alexander Zverev started his title defence at the Hamburg Open with a comfortable first-round win on a rainy Wednesday afternoon. The top seed of the ATP 500 clay-court tournament beat Jesper de Jong from the Netherlands 6-2, 6-2.
Zverev, who defeated Serbian Laslo Djere in the 2023 final, struck four aces and won 79 per cent of his first-service points. Under a closed roof on Center Court, the 27-year-old Hamburg native didn’t face a break point and capitalized on four of his own five break-point opportunities to prevail after one hour and 17 minutes.
No kneed to worry 😉
Alex Zverev with a strapped knee makes a winning return to the #HamburgOpen defeating qualifier De Jong 6-2 6-2#HamburgOpen pic.twitter.com/RvyogxPcaM
— Tennis TV (@TennisTV) July 17, 2024
“I was still unsure this morning if I was going to play or not and during the warm-up I was in quite a lot of pain,” said Zverev, who has a bone edema and tear in the capsule of his knee. “But somehow when I step on this court it disappears a little bit when the adrenaline gets going.
“I have an injury where I know where I stand and it will take time to heal. It won’t heal in the next few days, it will take weeks and it’s up to me if I am going to play like that or not.”
During his days in Hamburg, the World No. 4 needed to step up his game. Zverev began playing intensely for points in practice on Monday and Tuesday. Tournament director Enric Molina accommodated Zverev’s request by postponing his opening match by 24 hours, rescheduling it for Wednesday.
During his match, Zverev felt better than ever since his injury. “That makes me very happy,” he said. Zverev played without painkillers. “I would definitely expect to keep playing now. I’ve also discussed with my team that I won’t give up during a match. I’ve never done that. Now I know what it’s like on the match court. Of course, it wasn’t the most physical or toughest match. But it was a complete match.”
Next up will be Frenchman Hugo Gaston, who was a 7-6(4), 1-6, 6-4 winner over Facundo Diaz Acosta from Argentina.
