When 2015 rolled around, if you asked someone who Alexander Zverev was, chances are you would have received few useful answers.

Massive tennis fans may have been able to tell you that he was the junior champion at the Australian Open in 2014, or perhaps that he was a finalist at the French in 2013, but this is again a long-shot.

Fast forward just less than seven months though, and he is the kid turning heads after an impressive grass court season thus far, and is certainly one many are excited to see in SW19 next week.

So, what does the teenager bring to the table that has everyone eager to watch?

Zverev boasts wonderful qualities on court, both physically and mentally. On his day, he can be mature beyond his years, but is still working on maintaining some consistency in this area.

Meanwhile, his physical abilities cannot be denied, with his talent simply unquestionable. A tall young man, the German possesses great power in his game and this allows him to carry a wicked first serve and a powerful shot, both on his forehand and backhand.

As well as this, Zverev is very accurate in his play, allowing him to carry a more than decent second serve and a magical backhand down the line that is a winner nine times out of ten.

The 18-year-old often plays doubles with his brother, 27-year-old Mischa, and this has also improved his singles game, meaning he has great variety in his play. He can stay at the back of the court and defend well, but he can also approach the net and attack his opponent this way, with positivity one of his strengths on court.

Physically, Zverev's great agility and quick change of pace allows him to reach drop shots and, again, attack the ball by meeting it with a volley whilst his opponent is out of position, as opposed to letting them get back in and ready to receive the ball.

The way he constantly mixes things up and keeps his opponents on their toes is not only effective in terms of winning the match, but it is extremely exciting to watch and should win him a number of fans in London next week too.

Zverev celebrates his win at the Australian Open in 2014 as a junior.


Zverev really made a name for himself back in May, when he won his second ATP Challenger Tour title in Heilbronn of his native Germany. The victory saw him crack the top 100 having turned 18 just a month prior.

Germany continued to be graced with his presence as he put on brilliant performances in both Stuttgart and Halle this month. He reached the last 16 in the former, defeating qualifier Mate Pavic, a top 100 and former top 50 doubles player, in the first round, 3-6 6-3 6-3, but was defeated in the following stage by eventual finalist Viktor Troicki, who also reach the semi-finals at Queens, 6-3 6-7 6-3.

Yet, there were plenty of positives to take from his two matches. To match a player like Troicki for the most part of their encounter was impressive, whilst overcoming another promising young talent in Pavic was no easy task, but Zverev remained focused in his game even when his opponent leveled by winning the second set.

These psychological attributes are the ones the player needs to develop, as he certainly has the talent to be a top player, it's just about earning the experience and composure of one.

Halle saw more of these mental factors from Zverev in action as he comprehensively defeated Finnish veteran Jarkko Nieminen in straight sets in the first round, winning 6-4 6-4.

Of course the 18-year-old's natural ability flowed throughout, but we also saw marvellous maturity and composure in his game, with him able to serve well and hit crucial shots when under pressure, at break points for example. He out-thought his experienced opponent and his creativity and unpredictability won him the match and sent him into the last 16.

Here, he met an extremely tough challenge in Ivo Karlovic, the eighth seed and arguably a man with the best serve in tennis. However, Zverev held his own on serve in the first set and won it on the tiebreak to take a surprising lead in the match.

Karlovic used his experience to come back though and we were reminded of Zverev's youth in the process, as the teenager began to get agitated with himself, which saw him rush points far too quickly and fail to get most of his first serves in. His composure was missing all of a sudden, and his frustration with his game was only leading to more poor play and more frustration, when he really needed to just calm himself and slow things down.

Karvlovic did not need a second invitation and was quick to take advantage, winning the final two sets, both by a 6-3 scoreline, to take the match.

Still, the victory over Nieminen was ridiculously impressive, and was a positive that Zverev could take from his time in Halle, whilst he was also fantastic in spells during his last 16 clash, especially during the first set.

Nottingham this week was his next stop as he travelled to England in preparation for Wimbledon. Mikhail Kukushkin, the world number 58, was his first encounter, and he comfortably overcame his Kazakhstan-born opponent by a ruthless 6-0 6-2 scoreline, during a match in which he displayed all the qualities that have the tennis world excited about him.

The next victim of his marvellous energy was Thomaz Bellucci, the 13th seed, who lost 6-7 6-3 6-4 as Zverev registered a wonderful comeback to win his fourth match of his first ever grass court season.

However, his next task was sure to be a tough one as he played the in form Marcos Baghdatis, losing out 6-3 6-3. The Cyprus-born 30-year-old has lost just one match on grass this year, and that was to Rafael Nadal in Stuttgart, the man who went on to win that title. He is experiencing a sudden resurgence as he heads into his twilight years, and this, coupled with his experience, saw him resist Zverev this week.

The teenager was, again, bright in spells, but his composure was lacking and he made too many silly errors as a result. He failed to really trouble his opponent's serve, seeing just one break point all match and winning just 18 per cent of return points, whilst his own lacked its usual potency, meaning he won just 55 per cent of points on serve and saved just one of four break points.

This is what Zverev heads into Wimbledon looking to improve. He needs to develop greater composure and increase his experience, and the only way both of these can be achieved is through playing matches.

His thrilling natural talent will cause problems for opponents of all abilities and rankings in SW19, with the lack of knowledge about him and his game certainly something that will work in his favour as he approaches ties with more well-known players.

Given a favourable draw, Zverev could go on to record one of those breakthrough stories that we saw Nick Kyrgios do last year when he reached the quarter-finals, beating Nadal on the way. He has the talent to do so, anyway.

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About the author
Amee Ruszkai
Head of the Sunderland, Swansea City and women football sections at VAVEL UK. Email: [email protected]