HALLE, WESTPHALIA/STARNBERG, June 14, 2026
In the summer of 2009, a 12-year-old boy won the German final of the Nike Junior Tour at the TC Blau-Weiß Halle venue. “My biggest dream is to win all four Grand Slam tournaments,” he told a local sports reporter from the Westfalen-Blatt at the time.
Seventeen years later, that young talent has achieved one of his goals. Since last weekend, Alexander Zverev can call himself a Grand Slam champion, and on Sunday he was honored for that achievement on Centre Court at the heristo arena by the German Tennis Federation (DTB) and the TERRA WORTMANN OPEN.
“Tennis Germany was incredibly happy that it finally happened in Paris. We are all Grand Slam champions now,” DTB President Dietloff von Arnim told the crowd of around 3,000 fans. “When you play, Germany wants to watch. You create tremendous excitement.” He also pointed to the record television ratings achieved by Eurosport, which broadcast the final one week earlier.
Zverev also shares a special connection with the ATP 500 tournament in Halle. Six years after his junior triumph, he made his debut on Centre Court in June 2015, defeating Jarkko Nieminen 6-4, 6-4. Since then, apart from his injury-related withdrawal in 2022, the German has been a regular presence in East Westphalia. In nine appearances, he has reached two finals—losing to Florian Mayer in 2016 and Roger Federer in 2017—and has advanced to the semifinals in each of the past three years.
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“Alexander Zverev has been part of the identity of our tournament for many years,” said TERRA WORTMANN OPEN Tournament Director Ralf Weber. “He is not only the most successful German player of his generation, but also a fan favorite in Halle. That is why we are especially pleased to congratulate him today.”
Sven Wortmann, member of the Supervisory Board of WORTMANN AG, added: “We hope to welcome Sascha to the TERRA WORTMANN OPEN as often as possible and to enjoy many more years together in Halle.”
Zverev accepted the congratulations and two large-format commemorative pictures celebrating his French Open triumph with a broad smile.
“This trophy,” he said, “has been earned over the last 30 years because my family, my entire team and I have worked hard and done everything possible together to one day win a title like this.”
He also made a promise to his fans: “I want to play tennis for a very, very long time and win many more titles. I believe that together with the DTB we are doing a lot of good work, so that we won’t have to wait another 30 years.”
Looking ahead to the coming week and the 33rd edition of the TERRA WORTMANN OPEN, Zverev added: “Hopefully I can win this title one day as well. Thank you to everyone who is here. We’re going to have a great week.”
