LONDON — Alexander Zverev insisted he can surpass Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz as the preeminent force in tennis despite his painful loss in the Wimbledon final.
Zverev had a chance to follow his first Grand Slam title at the French Open in June by winning Wimbledon after taking the first set in the showdown with Sinner.
But the 29-year-old was unable to topple the relentless world No 1 as Sinner hit back to win 6-7 (7/9), 7-6 (7/2), 6-3, 6-4 in a bruising battle on Centre Court.
Although Zverev was frustrated to miss out on becoming the first German man to win Wimbledon since Michael Stich in 1991, he took comfort from a remarkable two months.
He shook off his tag as the most talented player never to win a Grand Slam by taking the title at Roland Garros, then banished his long struggle on grass by making his first Wimbledon final.
Zverev will rise to No 2 in the ATP rankings next week, just behind Sinner and ahead of Alcaraz, who has missed the last two Grand Slams due to a wrist injury.
Now Zverev believes he is ready to launch a sustained assault on the world No 1 spot and the sport’s top prizes.
“I hope so. That’s what I’m here to do. This year has been a progress. I’ve been pushing those guys. I haven’t beaten them this year, but I’ve pushed them to the limits, I would say,” he said.
“Alcaraz in Australia, Jannik maybe here. Even though it was four sets, I think it was a very close four sets, which could have gone five as well,” he added according to AFP.
“The last couple years, I’ve always been the third guy, but I was just far away from those two. So, if I get closer to them, if I can be in the mix of competing and winning the big tournaments with them, it would be great.”
