Zverev ‘Doesn’t Get Enough Respect’ Amid Alcaraz Breakthrough Says Becker

Alexander Zverev had a really fascinating season in 2023, and Boris Becker thinks he doesn’t get enough respect.

Alexander Zverev is one of those players most people know is really good, but very few people actually know how good he is. Part of that is his own doing with some inconsistent results, but part of it is his injury.

He was peaking at a really high-level last year when he broke his ankle, and it derailed him quite a bit. The comeback this year was very shaky at the start, but then he found his level again and played very well to finish the year.

It was somewhat fascinating to see him finish so strongly and find himself at the 2023 ATP Finals in Turin but he did. It’s worthy of respect, one that he doesn’t get, according to Becker.

Of course, he, as a German, would know Zverev better than most. Zverev himself holds Becker in very high regard, so he’ll be glad to hear about the praise Becker gave him on Eurosport’s Das Gelbe vom Ball podcast.

In my opinion, he doesn’t get enough respect from the tennis
experts internationally. They’re all talking about the young three or
four, but don’t give Zverev, Medvedev or Rublev enough respect. He’s playing with his fist in his pocket a little bit, wants everyone show that he is not a thing of the past, but that his best time is yet to come.

Zverev has to shoulder some blame because he still hasn’t lived up to his full potential. He was getting closer to it last year, but then the injury happened. We’ll see whether he can finally put the puzzle pieces together for 2024.

Some have wondered about Zverev’s choice of situation, but Becker isn’t concerned about it. He believes that Zverev’s father is more than good to do the job.

Surely his father knows best what is good for his son, but if you look into the box at the competition, you can also see changes.