Tennis pro Alexander Zverev has kept his health a secret after his defeat against Taylor Fritz at the Laver Cup. The world number two admitted that he had had a fever for four days, was not feeling well and was therefore hardly present at his teammates’ matches.
When asked specifically about his fitness and whether he would play all of the upcoming tournaments in Asia as planned, the German replied: “I was somewhat gagged by my management back there, by my brother and Sergej.”
Brother Mischa and Sergej Bubka stood behind the journalists when Zverev sat in the press conference after the 4:6, 5:7 defeat against Fritz. However, when asked, neither of them wanted to comment. “That’s a private matter,” they said.
Dizziness in Paris, coughing in the USA
During the match for Team Europe, Zverev repeatedly struggled with his body in the arena in eastern Berlin. The doctor had to come onto the court in the middle of the second set. Zverev’s cough could be heard throughout the arena. “My heart rate was pretty high,” Zverev reported after his third defeat in a row against the American.
Zverev’s health and fitness have been a mystery for weeks. At the Paris Summer Games, he failed in the quarterfinals, complained of dizziness and reported that he had seen four balls at times. He was also ill when he was knocked out in Montreal, coughing loudly. According to Zverev, blood tests did not provide any clarity about the cause of the symptoms. Now the next setback.
© dpa-infocom, dpa:240922-930-239487/1
This is a message directly from the dpa news channel.
