Alexander Zverev issues warning to Carlos Alcaraz – ‘I’m here to play’
Alexander Zverev needs some time to recover following his lung-busting win over Jannik Sinner, but he has warned Carlos Alcaraz that he “will be ready” for their quarter-final showdown at the US Open.
The 2020 US Open runner-up claimed arguably his biggest hard-court Grand Slam win as he defeated Sinner 6-4, 3-6, 6-2, 4-6, 6-3 with the result the German’s first-ever win over a top 10 opponent on the surface at majors.
The clash was an energy-sapping affair on Arthur Ashe Stadium as they slugged it out for four hours and 41 minutes with the encounter ending 1:30am in New York.
But the draw doesn’t get easier as he faces defending champion Alcaraz for a place in the semi-final.
When asked during his post-match on-court interview for his thoughts on playing the Spaniard next, Zverev paused for a long time before answering with a smile on his face: “I am here to play. That’s what I love doing. I don’t know how it will end up, but I will give it my absolute best like I always do. I’ll fight against the last moment.
“Of course I have to recover after this physical match, but I’ll be ready.”
It will be the pair’s sixth top-level meeting with Zverev leading the head-to-head 3-2.
The former world No 2 won their first two clashes on hard courts in Acapulco and Vienna in 2021 before Alcaraz won the 2022 Madrid Open final. Zverev then won last year’s French Open quarter-final encounter in four sets while the Spaniard won their most recent match on the clay in Madrid.
Top seed Alcaraz is also expecting a difficult encounter later in the week.
“Against Sasa, the head-to-head as well is really close,” he said. “So we’ve played great matches. He’s playing really well this year. He’s finding his top level again. It’s going to be a really tough quarter-final.”
Both Zverev and Sinner struggled late in the match with the latter battling cramp while the German also revealed he was “done”.
“I actually don’t know how I managed it as I was completely done in the fourth set. I was extremely tired, I think he was fitter than me. Even though he was cramping I still think he was in better shape,” he said.
“In the fifth set I somehow found [my rhythm] again, but without the energy, without the crowd this would not have been possible.
“To be honest this is one of the best moments of my career after my comeback.”
