Alexander Zverev Surprised With Ivan Lendl Stepping Down

Published 07/26/2019, 2:30 PM EDT

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World Number five, Alexander Zverev secured a thrilling comeback win against Filip Krajinovic in the quarterfinals of German Open 2019. The Hamburg-born tennis player was trailing behind by 2-6, 2-5 in the quarterfinal encounter and later, he bounced back 2-6, 7-5, 6-2 to reach the semifinals in his birthplace.

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Before his classic victory today, Zverev’s coach (ex-coach now) Ivan Lendl gave his notice to Sascha’s team and he was not informed about Lendl’s resignation. “We did not have any contact, it was a bit surprising that he made it during the tournament and I learned it through the media, it was a bit strange for me, but I have nothing but respect for him had a great 10 months with London,” the second seed, Alexander Zverev said after his quarterfinal win.

After the World Number Five, Zverev received the information from the media about their split, he revealed that Ivan and himself were not compatible enough to work together and failed to produce flourishing results on the tour (Zverev just won Geneva Open this year after his ATP World Tour Finals victory in 2017). 

Their partnership lasted for less than 11 months and Zverev’s off-court dilemmas were creating a hindrance for both of them to harmonize.

via Imago

It felt like we were both going in other directions, we did not have a date after the tournament, but we knew what to talk about, just wish him the best, have the best coach in the world happy – for now (laughs),” Zverev continued.

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Nevertheless, the former World Number one, Lendl had good relations with everyone in Zverev’s team and the German lad is grateful for everything Lendl could do for him. “Ivan was great to everyone in the team, there’s nothing to complain about, I want to go back to my old way, have family and dad around me, have that feeling again, that’s something Ivan noticed but not that I do not like him,” Sascha added.

Alexander Zverev has been dealing with management issues for his team and a few months ago he was engaged in a legal dispute with his former manager Patricio Apey (founder of ACE Group International). Today, he reflected upon the managerial unit of his team.   

“Seeing the past I always can assume, that I could have made things better. I’m a human being, not a robot. But I have to live with that. But I’m not sure what I have should be done better. I’m happy right now with the Management situation, that will change soon and my game will improve hopefully,” Zverev said.

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via Imago

Up next, Zverev will play the fourth seed, Nikoloz Basilashvili in the semifinals of Hamburg Open 2019.

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Mahalakshmi Murali

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Mahalakshmi Murali joined EssentiallySports in 2018 as a tennis author and has gone on to pen more than 1800 engaging articles, probing into various aspects of the sport and its illustrious players. With her expertise on the sport, Mahalakshmi has interviewed stalwarts from the sport such as Serena WIlliams’ coach Patrick Mouratoglou and Kevin Anderson’s physio, Carlos Costa. Equipped with her vast experience and a keen understanding of the sport, Mahalakshmi now co-heads the tennis department.
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