Alexander Zverev may be about to make a big move following his shock defeat at Wimbledon.
Travelling to SW19 as the number three seed, Zverev lost to Arthur Rinderknech in his opening match, suffering his worst defeat at a Grand Slam in six years.
Looking to make a change after such a disappointing result, Zverev has been seen training with Toni Nadal this week.
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The 64-year-old Spaniard is best known for his time working with his nephew, Rafael Nadal, whom he guided to 16 Grand Slam titles.
Giving his verdict on Nadal and Zverev’s potential coaching relationship, Boris Becker has one big question to ask.
Boris Becker wants to know what role Alexander Zverev Sr and Mischa Zverev will play if Toni Nadal is hired
During the latest episode of ‘Becker Petkovic’, former world number one Becker shared his thoughts on the potential partnership between Zverev and Nadal.
“I’ll give it a thumbs up if it’s true, both of them have to confirm it first. But if it’s true that Toni Nadal is Alexander Zverev’s new coach, then he’s done everything right,” he said.
“He [Nadal] knows how to win Grand Slams. He’s won every Grand Slam as a coach, he is a seasoned pro.
“And if Rafa [Nadal] comes along as a mentor from time to time and tells Sascha something, Zverev has to listen and believe him. I think the combination is really exciting. I wish them both only the very best.”
Becker did, however, have one question to ask, as he wondered how Nadal would fit into Zverev’s current setup.
“My question is, what does his father do? What does his brother do? Do they still play an active role in his tennis life?” he asked.
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“What does the box look like in Canada? What does the box look like at the US Open?
“I don’t think Toni likes to be interfered with in his training methods, in his strategic decisions, even though his father has a great understanding of tennis, and so does his brother. I think Toni either does it all or nothing.
“We don’t know how they will manage it.”
As it turns out, that’s not the only question that needs answering, as Becker’s co-host, Andrea Petkovic, highlighted another potential issue Nadal and Zverev could encounter.
Andrea Petkovic is concerned the partnership could fail due to Alexander Zverev’s poor punctuality
Petkovic is worried that Zverev and Nadal could encounter an issue when working together, which the German has struggled with throughout his career.
“The only concern I have is that I know Toni Nadal is very insistent about one thing, and it’s not Alexander Zverev’s strong suit. Punctuality,” she said.
“Toni Nadal’s an extremely punctual person and he insists on extreme punctuality. Alexander Zverev, not so much.
“If he can pull that off, then this could be a successful partnership, but it could fail precisely because Sascha shows up seven minutes late on the court for the first training session and Toni runs away.”
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Becker shared those same concerns, as he recalled what Nadal banned his nephew from doing when coaching him.
“You’re absolutely right. Toni is a discipline fanatic. He expects punctuality, and he also expects respect for the sport of tennis,” he said.
“He knows the history of tennis, I mean, Nadal has never smashed a racket on court in his life because Toni didn’t allow him to.
“Toni has very clear rules about what he allows and what he doesn’t allow.”
Whilst she clearly outlined the 27-year-old’s problems with punctuality, Petkovic was keen to note how hard Zverev works.
“It’s probably worth mentioning that Sascha is one of the hardest workers in the world. That’s not the problem, just the punctuality,” she said.
Working as hard as he has, Zverev has established himself as one of the best players in the men’s game and is currently ranked third on the ATP Tour.
RankNameAgeNationalityPoints1Jannik Sinner23Italian12,0302Carlos Alcaraz22Spanish8,6003Alexander Zverev28German6,3104Taylor Fritz27American5,0355Jack Draper23British4,6506Novak Djokovic38Serbian4,1307Lorenzo Musetti23Italian3,3508Holger Rune22Danish3,3409Ben Shelton22American3,33010Andrey Rublev27Russian3,110Current ATP top ten
Only time will tell if Zverev can close the gap to Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz at the top of the rankings, but it will certainly be something to look out for as the season progresses.
Zverev is scheduled to return to action at the Canadian Open, which begins on Monday, July 28.