Andre Agassi explains why Alexander Zverev is at a disadvantage at the Laver Cup this year
Alexander Zverev is undoubtedly one of, if not the, best player in the world right now following his two Grand Slam titles this year.
The German claimed the Roland Garros and US Open titles and he arrives at the Laver Cup as the top-ranked player at the star-studded team tournament.
He will be hoping to help Team Europe when their titles back from Team World and he will play alongside the likes of Carlos Alcaraz and Casper Ruud at The O2 Arena in London.
Despite his incredible form coming into the tournament, Team World’s captain Andre Agassi believes the conditions in London won’t suit the German.
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Speaking on Served, the American legend said: “Yeah, yeah, well, I assure you, winning is addictive, and, you know, Sascha Zverev, he’s done a lot of that this year.
“But with that being said, he’s a big guy. You know, he’s 6’6. He serves through the court. It’s hard to go through this court,” continued Agassi.
The American used his performances last year, when the conditions in San Francisco were also fairly slow, as an example of why he might struggle.
He added: “Last year, he played De Minaur. A stat you could probably pull up. I kind of stick with numbers for some reason, it just sticks in my craw. He aced De Minaur once the whole match. So it gives you an idea of how slow the court is.
“Big guys don’t like the ball down there, so there’s ways to kind of find some inroads there.”
Zverev has not been compared for the first day of action at the Laver Cup, so he will very likely play at the tournament on Saturday, 26th September.
The German has an excellent record at the Laver Cup, despite the court, conditions. He’s won the tournament a record five times for Team Europe and he’s made the most appearance at the tournament out of anyone in history.
He’s also won more points than anyone else, with 21, so he will be confident he can continue his streak as he returns to The O2 Arena for the first time since 2022.
Following the Laver Cup, Zverev will head to the China Open. He will be the top seed at the tournament, following Jannik Sinner’s withdrawal from the ATP 500 event.
As a result of Sinner’s withdrawal, Zverev now has an excellent chance to make more ground up on the world No 1 in his quest to become the year-end world number one.
