Former world No 1 issues scathing Alexander Zverev verdict ahead of French Open
Alexander Zverev has been slammed for the way he reacted to his loss to Lorenzo Musetti in Rome by former doubles world No 1 Rennae Stubbs.
In the quarter-finals of the Italian Open earlier this month, Zverev was beaten 7-6(1), 6-4 by Musetti.
The world No 3 suggested he was frustrated by Musetti’s playing style and was heavily critical of the tennis balls used at the Masters 1000 event.
“I think he (Musetti) plays similar when he plays on clay all the time,” Zverev told reporters. “He depends a lot on defense. He depends a lot on the mistakes from other opponents.
“Today was difficult for me to hit winners. It was very slow, very, very heavy. The balls were getting very big.”
The German added: “Balls were a joke today. Generally speaking this is a subject we’ve had over the last three, four years now. Players are talking about it all the time. They say we play with the same ball in Monaco, Madrid, Munich.
“Then we come here and the ball is totally different. The ball is very, very big. It’s very difficult to hit winners here. It’s just how it is these days.”
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Speaking on the Rennae Stubbs Tennis Podcast, Stubbs was scathing in her response to Zverev’s complaints.
“No man, your forehand – you are a bigger pusher [than Musetti] on that shot,” said the Australian, who coached Serena Williams.
“And you hate playing Musetti because he slices to your forehand and you are 17 feet tall. You have the worst grip. You can’t get underneath it and you are a p***y when you don’t go for it.
“That is why you are never going to be a great player. I mean, you are a great player, but you are never going to win a Grand Slam if you’re going to complain about the balls.
“When was the last time Rafael Nadal or Roger Federer or Novak Djokovic complained about the balls? Like what?”
Musetti, who now holds a 3-1 record against Zverev (with his only defeat coming via retirement), made his feelings clear when asked about the German’s comments on his game.
“Does he think I’m too cautious? If he wants, he can do it too. We also played on other surfaces and the result was the same,” Musetti told Ubitennis.
Zverev will begin his campaign at the 2025 French Open against Learner Tien on Tuesday.
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