The old adage that form is temporary and class is permanent is not applicable to world No 3 Alexander Zverev right now.
Roll the clock back to last February and the bombshell news that Jannik Sinner was facing a three-month ban from tennis after posting two positive doping test for a banned anabolic steroid and Zverev appeared to be the player ready to step into the void he left behind.
Zverev was beaten by Sinner in the Australian Open final at the start of 2025, as he confirmed he was the second best player in the world at that time by reaching the first Grand Slam final of the year.
Yet that run in Melborune proved to be the highlight of his season so far, as his decision to take big appearance fees to play in the South American clay court swing in February backfired and he has struggled to find his best form since.
He is still the world No 3, but Zverev’s form does not suggest he is playing anywhere near that level and his crushing defeat against Alex de Minaur in the Laver Cup on Saturday highlighted that slide in fortunes.
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Zverev was hammered into submission by De Minaur, who recorded a 6-1, 6-4 win against his higher-ranked opponent in front of a vocal Laver Cup crowd, said he had been forced to change his game to take on the biggest hitters in tennis.
“I started pretty quickly,” said De Minaur. “I knew it was going to get harder, because he’s a great competitor, he was going to make my life very difficult. But I’m so proud of myself for backing myself.
“It’s a part of my game that I’ve definitely unlocked over the last two years. It’s been a crucial part of me getting into the Top 10 and taking that next step in my career. I’ve got to do more of it.
“These guys, they hit the ball so hard and so big. I’ve got to find different ways to hurt them. That’s part of my game style.
“I’ve got the ability to use my speed not only to retrieve but also to sneak into the net. The more I do it, the more comfortable I feel, the more points I win, the more dangerous I become.”
Zverev looks a little lost on course for much of the match and that has been the story for much of the year, with his comments in a world exclusive interview with Tennis365 back in June confirming that Australian Open final defeat against Sinner left a lasting mark.
“It did take me a while to get over it because I really went into the match and I thought, I can win this, I’m going to win,” Zverev told Tennis365.
“Then very quickly, I felt like, well, he’s outplaying me on every single aspect. So I felt a bit lost out there at times.
“Jannik was above everyone else the entire tournament and there was nothing else to say, but after that, I made some mistakes.”
“I think I overplayed. Played too many events. I didn’t give myself, my body and my mind time to accept what happened. I just carried on playing and kind of had a little bit of a burnout in the middle of the season.
“It was too much. Some stupid decisions from my end and I paid the price for them, but I still feel my time will come.”
On the evidence of his latest hammering against De Minaur, Zverev has bigger problems than even he may have expected, as his game appears to be sliding backwards at a time when his rivals are threatening to leave him in their rear view mirror.
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