Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner sent warning after Alexander Zverev’s Roland Garros win
Alexander Zverev ended several years of hurt to claim his very first Grand Slam title at Roland Garros.
The German had previously lost three Grand Slam finals without claiming a major, but his five-set victory against Flavio Cobolli ensured he was now a Grand Slam champion.
Zverev benefitted from the early exits of Jannik Sinner and Novak Djokovic at Roland Garros, as well as the early withdrawal from Carlos Alcaraz.
However, Zverev was certainly a worthy Roland Garros winner and Toni Nadal now believes it could spur him on to truly challenge Sinner and Alcaraz.
Speaking to Radioestadio Noche, Toni Nadal believes Alexander Zverev’s victory at Roland Garros could now bring him closer to Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz.
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“For many years, Zverev has been obsessed with winning a Grand Slam. That creates a lot of pressure. He’s someone who loves tennis. This victory will bring him closer to Sinner and Alcaraz, and it will allow him to play much more aggressively,” said Rafael Nadal’s former coach.
Rumours swirled around Nadal and Zverev creating a coaching partnership during the 2025 season, but it never come to fruition on a full-time basis.
The Spanish coach did, however, confirm some pieces of advice he gave to the new Roland Garros champion.
“I told him he had to change his attitude, that he shouldn’t be so negative… and that it wasn’t a matter of coaching, but rather giving his father the opportunity to win a Slam alongside him,” he said.
After his maiden Grand Slam title, Nadal now believes Zverev has done enough to be heralded as one of the very best tennis players ever.
“For me, Zverev is a better player than Wawrinka,” he explained.
Considering Wawrinka won three Grand Slam titles, and is very often grouped alongside Andy Murray, Nadal, Roger Federer, and Novak Djokovic, that’s high praise indeed from the Spanish icon.
Zverev will next play the Halle Open and Wimbledon and if he performs well at both tournaments he will have a major chance to dislodge Alcaraz from his World No. 2 spot.
2770 ranking points split Alcaraz and Zverev currently, but the Spaniard’s absence from the Tour gives the German a real chance to make some ground up.
Alcaraz has already confirmed he will not be playing Wimbledon this year, so he will lose the 1300 ranking points he earned last season by reaching the final.
The German was knocked out of the first round of Wimbledon last year, to Arthur Rinderknech, so a lengthy run at SW19 will ensure he is given a healthy ranking boost.
