Alexander Zverev and his ‘perfect’ body score a routine win

Despite a “sloppy” start to his first round encounter against Aljaz Bedene, Alexander Zverev and his “perfect” body marched through to round 2 at the Australian Open.
The 21-year-old German is billed by most pundits as a future Grand Slam champion but to date has failed to live up to expectations on the biggest stages in world tennis.
Carrying a hamstring injury into his round 1 match on Tuesday, Zverev got off to a tardy start as he lost his serve in the opening set to trails his Slovenian opponent 3-4.
Zverev broke back immediately and took control of the match to secure a 6-4 6-1 6-4 win in 1hr 55min.
https://twitter.com/usopen/status/1085039644306296832
“I was a little bit sloppy so it was a wake-up call to play better,” he said of the early break of serve.
Bedene occasionally entered the match but had no answer to Zverev as the World No4 found his stride despite dealing with a hamstring injury for some days.
Asked about the niggles, he told court interviewer Jim Courier: “My body is close to perfection right now.”
"My body is close to perfection right now."
Sascha's feeling himself 😎#AusOpen pic.twitter.com/pMqOoB3kOf
— #AusOpen (@AustralianOpen) January 15, 2019
Ego aside, he added: “I’ve had about 86 injuries and the ankle is still a bit swollen. But I’ve done everything right in my preparation. Now I either play well or I don’t.”
Zverev, whose next opponent will either be Jeremy Chardy or Ugo Humbert, hasn’t advanced beyond the third round in three previous trips to the Australian Open.
More from Tennis365:
Latest
-
Tennis News
Novak Djokovic labelled strongest and least loved of the big three
Novak Djokovic is feared more than loved.
-
Davis Cup
Dan Evans owns ‘hardest loss to take’ in Davis Cup tie against Colombia
Britain were handed the nightmare trip after failing to qualify for the quarter-finals last year.
-
News
Casper Ruud out to emulate Rafael Nadal and Dominic Thiem
Casper Ruud believes he can win on any surface.
-
Wimbledon
Ukraine’s Elina Svitolina begs Wimbledon to maintain ban on Russian and Belarusian players
Elina Svitolina has begged Wimbledon to maintain the ban.
-
Australian Open
Novak Djokovic’s Australian Open win was a ratings flop for American TV
ESPN have released their viewing figures for the Australian Open final and they suggest just 439,000 viewers watched in America.
-
ATP Tour
Felix Auger-Aliassime backed to win Wimbledon in 2023
Felix Auger-Aliassime has been backed to make his Grand Slam breakthrough in 2023.
-
News
Serena Williams opens up on Will Smith’s Oscar slap
Serena Williams says that we are all human and make mistakes in the heat of the moment.
-
Tennis News
Nick Kyrgios escapes conviction despite pleading guilty to assaulting ex-girlfriend
Nick Kyrgios saw the common assault charge against him dismissed.
-
Davis Cup
Great Britain braced for ‘complicated’ Davis Cup qualifier in Colombia
Matches will be played at an altitude of 2,600 metres and with pressureless balls.
-
WTA Tour
Heather Watson ends her quarter-final drought with win in Thailand – ‘It was just survival of the fittest’
Heather Watson will now face Chinese seventh seed Xinyu Wang.