Professional athletes have this weird ability to suffer one of the most devastating injuries of their careers and accomplishing the impossible in just months, sometimes years thereafter. To mortal men and women, it almost seems like a superpower. It’s the Adrian Peterson model. For those unfamiliar, in 2011 Peterson tore his ACL and MCL – less than 10 months after his injury, Peterson he led the NFL in both yardage (775) and yards per game (96.9) and won the league’s MVP.
In May 2011, after 14 seasons with the Indianapolis Colts, Peyton Manning went in for his first of two surgeries to correct his herniated disc. That disc herniation ended up costing Manning his job with the Colts, and he went on to win a Superbowl with the Denver Broncos in 2016. Late in 2017, Tiger Woods had surgery on his back for the third time in his career. Just a year later, the forty-three-year-old won his fifth Masters in heroic fashion. Athletes at the highest level are just different beasts, they make the impossible, possible. Alexander Zverev might just have an opportunity to follow the same model this month at the All England Club.
On June 3rd last year, the German was ranked third in the world. He took Court Philippe-Chatrier on a Friday in Paris in hopes of reaching his first French Open final appearance. His opponent, Rafel Nadal was set. The stage is set, it’s the Matador vs the Lion. The Lion fresh off a quarterfinal victory over another Spaniard, Carlos Alcaraz. For three hours, he gave Nadal about as much trouble as anyone else had at Roland Garros that year. Then Zverev went over on his ankle and did not play again until 2023. The timing could not have been worse – the German was in the best form of his life and, regardless of the outcome, was set to reach a career-high world #2.
Imagine telling Zverev the day he comes out of surgery “All is good, you’ll be back here next year. You’ll be #17 in the live rankings come this time. You’ll have the sixth best odds to win Wimbledon as well.” What’s his reaction? He laughs at you right? Wouldn’t you know it, Alexander Zverev found himself in the exact same spot. He was back in the semifinals at Roland Garros just one year later.
But how? To get back to that level in only twelve months?
We got that answer a few weeks ago. Jonathan Pinfield of Live Sports FM in the UK had a chance to speak with Zverev following his round of 16 victory over Grigor Dimitrov. Pinfield asked the 26-year-old why his fans call him the lion.
Pinfield: “Your fans call you the lion, is it because you’re confident, athletic, some might say handsome, or is it because you sleep all the time? I’d like to ask you, how will the Lion sleep tonight and what will you be dreaming about?
Zverev: “Yeah what is it? Lions sleep 18 hours a day, have sex for four hours a day, and eat for two?
Pinfield: “What a life!”
Zverev: “Doesn’t sound to be for me.”
A loose Zverev is a dangerous Zverev. Looking for a dark horse at the All England Club? Well, you might’ve found it. He might not exactly be a grass-court great, but his record on the surface is solid. He’s gone 33-17 so far in his career, winning 65% of his grass-court matches. Zverev’s tennis game is characterized by several strengths, the powerful serve, solid groundstrokes, and strong defensive skills. He moves well too, especially for a big man. Most importantly, when he is playing with confidence, his aggressive approach to the game can see him take the racquet out of opponent’s hands.
He followed up his semifinal run at Roland Garros with a quick surface change and hit the grass running. He’s won three of his first four matches on the surface, all in his home country of Germany. Zverev didn’t drop a set in three straight matches in Halle until facing a scorching hot Alexander Bublik in the semifinals where he was ousted 6-3 7-5. Expect his current form to continue, even in his half of the draw. Overshadowed by the likes of Carlos Alcaraz and Daniil Medvedev, he is confident in his ability at Wimbledon and backed that confidence up by beating Gijs Brouwer in straight sets in his opener.
Zverev is not being taken seriously as a legitimate threat at the All England Club. But maybe he should be.
Main photo credit: Peter van den Berg-USA TODAY Sports
