Hamburg Tennisturnier am Rothenbaum
Hamburgers cheer Zverev – and he delivers a declaration of love and a victory
Status: 4:35 p.m. | Reading time: 3 minutes
Alexander Zverev dominated his opening game at will
Quelle: Getty Images for MatchMaker/Alexander Scheuber
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Born in Hamburg, Alexander Zverev confidently wins his first round match at the Rothenbaum tennis tournament. At a press conference the day before, he briefly addressed a legal dispute. – and denied all allegations.
With his declaration of love for his homeland, Alexander Zverev once again delighted the Hamburg audience after the converted match point. The Olympic tennis champion got off to a perfect start in the home tournament and presented himself in strong form for his hoped-for first triumph at Rothenbaum. In the midst of the fuss about allegations of physical harm, which he had “completely” rejected shortly before the start of the traditional event, the 26-year-old gave Slovakian Alex Molcan no chance. In just 61 minutes, Zverev made it into the round of 16 6-0, 6-3.
“You can see that in other sports, in football and basketball, that you just feel more comfortable at home, you have an advantage, I noticed that today,” enthused Zverev to the cheers of the spectators on Center Court. “I’m glad I’m back home in Hamburg. Hopefully we will all have a nice week.”
Sophia Thomalla, friend of Alexander Zverev, watched the game in the stadium
Source: dpa/Frank Molter
For Zverev it was the third victory over the world number 118. Molcan within just under two months. Last week he had a lot more trouble in three sets in Bastad. Why was it different this time? “Because we are in Hamburg,” said Zverev with a grin. In the round of 16, the Davis Cup player now faces Maximilian Marterer in a German duel. When two wild card starters met, Marterer prevailed 7:6 (7:2), 6:2 against Rudolf Molleker. Previously, Daniel Altmaier had reached the round of 16.
Michael Stich celebrated his last tournament victory in the men’s competition at Hamburg’s Rothenbaum 30 years ago. In five previous attempts, Zverev had not made it past the semifinals and is back in his hometown for the first time since 2019.
Rothenbaum tennis stadium: Alexander Zverev welcomes boys and girls to a campaign by his foundation to support children suffering from diabetes (type 1).
Source: dpa
“It’s a different kind of pressure,” Zverev reported before the game about the special situation in front of the home crowd. “Every tennis player starts because it was a childhood dream to become a professional and enjoy the atmosphere in front of a full ranks.” His demand on himself: “This little kid has to come out.”
And after Zverev was announced as “Hamburger Jung” and entered the center court celebrated by the audience, this childlike joy was felt from the start. The former world number two dominated at will and made winning the first set perfect after just 27 minutes. Zverev didn’t let up in the second round either. Molcan got his first game to 1: 3 – but only a little later Zverev was allowed to celebrate.
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Zverev had commented on recent, personal headlines for the first time the day before. “From my side: I completely reject the allegations. My lawyers will take care of the matter. I won’t say more about it,” said Zverev.
On July 7, the Berlin public prosecutor’s office applied to the Tiergarten District Court for a penal order to be issued against the 26-year-old, as the court confirmed. He is charged with assault. The court did not provide details of the allegations. The alleged injured party is said to be a former friend of Zverev.
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“The court now has to decide on the basis of the file situation whether it affirms sufficient suspicion and shares the public prosecutor’s assessment of the legal assessment and the amount of the penalty requested,” the court said in a statement. This is not a verdict, but a decision proposed by the public prosecutor. How high the requested penalty is, remained open. Zverev is currently presumed innocent until a final conviction.