The Cincinnati Open clash between Alexander Zverev and Terence Atmane proved to be quite a close affair. The German was pushed to the limit, but eventually claimed a 7-6, 7-6 victory to reach the Round of 16. The match also consisted of a tense moment as Zverev accidentally hit Atmane’s arm with a strong shot. However, not only did the Frenchman shrug off injury concerns, but also won the crowd over with his reaction to the shot.

The incident occurred with the first set tied at 5-5 and Atmane having the advantage in the 11th game. After a short rally, Zverev accidentally hit a shot straight at Atmane’s body, who failed to dodge it. The World No. 2 immediately went over to apologize, but Atmane laughed it off, and the two shook hands in a wholesome moment.

The Cincinnati crowd didn’t hesitate to applaud the sportsmanship that Atmane displayed. Both players gave it their all on the court, and the two sets went down to the wire. Neither player was able to create a big separation, and only two breaks of serve were recorded throughout the contest.

Even the tiebreakers were pretty intense, but Zverev eventually pulled through by clinching them 7-4 and 8-6, respectively. After the match, he hailed Atmane for his effort and admitted that the Frenchman’s aggressive playstyle made it hard for him to score points.

“Really a step up from my first match,” he said in his post-match interview. “(Terence) Atmane played amazing tennis, incredibly aggressive, unbelievable serve, hitting forehands all over the court.”

Zverev may have gotten past the first two rounds, but his performances haven’t been convincing, to say the least. He began his campaign with a tough 3-6, 6-3, 6-3 victory over Cameron Norrie. The Brit tested the World No. 2 well, but he mounted an impressive comeback to avoid a second consecutive early exit in the hard-court swing.

It is safe to say that Zverev hasn’t had a great start to the new season. He suffered a shocking 6-7, 6-2, 6-4 defeat in the second round against Tallon Griekspoor. The situation was the same in doubles, as he and Marcelo Melo were defeated 6-3, 7-6 by Alexis Galarneau and Duncan Chan in the Round of 32.

But the victories over Norrie and Atmane will give him some much-needed confidence as he makes his way further into the tournament. The second win was pretty important for Zverev as it saw him climb a place in the rankings.

Alexander Zverev leaves Carlos Alcaraz behind once again

Zverev has moved to the second spot in the rankings once again. He now has a tally of 7,790 points, and Alcaraz has dropped to third with 7,160 points. With there being serious doubts over the Spaniard’s participation at the US Open, Zverev can get the opportunity to build a massive gap if he performs well in the Grand Slam.

This isn’t the first time that Zverev has overtaken Alcaraz for second place. He had claimed the spot after reaching the Wimbledon final, but fell behind after he lost points for the Canadian Open due to a calendar shift. Alcaraz didn’t lose any points through the tournament as he didn’t participate in it last year and thus regained second spot.

But Zverev can now rack up a big number of points by making a deep run in Cincinnati. This could see him cement his spot in second place. But the German will need to go a long way if he wants to dethrone Jannik Sinner from the top spot.

He currently has a 5,010-point lead over Zverev with a tally of 12,800 points. Even if the Italian doesn’t participate in the US Open, he will keep his place at the top, and it can be quite a grueling task to dethrone him. The only ones close to his points tally are Zverev and Alcaraz. It is highly unlikely that anyone else would come into the picture this season.