Alexander Zverev warned what ‘he can’t afford to do’ if he wants to win more Grand Slams
A former world No 10 has sent a warning to Alexander Zverev after the German’s triumph at the 2026 French Open.
Zverev defeated Flavio Cobolli in five sets in the final at Roland Garros to achieve his biggest goal of securing his maiden Grand Slam crown.
The German star, who had lost his first three major finals, was previously considered one of the best players to never win a Grand Slam.
The 29-year-old is the first German man to win Roland Garros in the Open Era and the first to claim a major title since Boris Becker in 1996.
Zverev‘s triumph broke a streak of nine consecutive Grand Slam tournaments won by either Carlos Alcaraz or Jannik Sinner since the beginning of 2024.
Speaking on Prime Video Sport France, Lucas Pouille weighed in on whether Zverev could win more majors after his long-awaited breakthrough.
“To answer the question: Will he win other Grand Slam tournaments? What’s certain is that to beat Alcaraz and Sinner, he can’t afford what he did today on the court and since the start of the tournament,” said the 32-year-old Frenchman.
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“That is to say, you can’t drop in intensity while having such high highs and such low lows.
“Again, you have to put my words in perspective; this is in relation to the very best in the world and the very best players.
“It’s an exceptional tournament, but Sinner and Alcaraz are missing today, and to beat them, he’ll have to do better.”
In his post-match press conference, Zverev addressed if his maiden Grand Slam title will give him the belief to win multiple majors.
“Now no matter what happens, I will always be a Grand Slam champion, and nobody can take that away from me,” said the world No 3.
“Maybe, yeah, that does give me some freedom. It does give me some – maybe my mind will just be a little bit calmer when I play a final, meaning that even if I lose it, I will still be a Grand Slam champion.
“I think, yeah, this trophy for me is very important, because if I would have lost this one, the self-belief would have gone down a lot. But now that I’ve won it, I feel like I can do it again.”
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