Alexander Zverev defeated Rafael Jodar in straight sets to move within two wins of a maiden Grand Slam title.
The German is widely regarded as the greatest player to have never won a major title.
Zverev has won the ATP Finals, countless Masters 1000 titles, and even Olympic gold, but has yet to get his hands on a Grand Slam.
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As he edges ever closer to Grand Slam glory, Zverev has shared whether he would trade his Olympic gold medal for a major title.
Alexander Zverev claims he wouldn’t trade his Olympic gold medal for a Grand Slam
During his latest press conference at Roland Garros, Zverev was asked if he would trade Olympic gold for a Grand Slam win.
“No, no chance,” said Zverev.
“The gold medal, for me, is the most difficult thing to win, because you get a chance once every four years, and it’s special in a way that there are so little people that have done it.
“I think you do it for your country, for the people back home.
“I would never trade my gold medal for anything.
“But, I wouldn’t mind to add a few things to my list as well!”
Since tennis returned to the Olympic calendar in Seoul, 38 years ago, just nine men have won gold.
Olympic medallists (Open Era – men’s singles)
| Olympic Games | Gold medallist | Silver medallist | Bronze medallist |
| 2024 Paris | Novak Djokovic (Serbia) | Carlos Alcaraz (Spain) | Lorenzo Musetti (Italy) |
| 2020 Tokyo | Alexander Zverev (Germany) | Karen Khachanov (Russian Olympic Committee) | Pablo Carreno Busta (Spain) |
| 2016 Rio | Andy Murray (Great Britain) | Juan Martin del Potro (Argentina) | Kei Nishikori (Japan) |
| 2012 London | Andy Murray (Great Britain) | Roger Federer (Switzerland) | Juan Martin del Potro (Argentina) |
| 2008 Beijing | Rafael Nadal (Spain) | Fernando Gonzalez (Chile) | Novak Djokovic (Serbia) |
| 2004 Athens | Nicolas Massu (Chile) | Mardy Fish (USA) | Fernando Gonzalez (Chile) |
| 2000 Sydney | Yevgeny Kafelnikov (Russia) | Tommy Haas (Germany) | Arnaud Di Pasquale (France) |
| 1996 Atlanta | Andre Agassi (USA) | Sergi Bruguera (Spain) | Leander Paes (India) |
| 1992 Barcelona | Marc Rosset (Switzerland) | Jordi Arrese (Spain) | Goran Ivanisevic (Croatia)/Andrei Cherkasov (Unified Team) |
| 1988 Seoul | Miloslav Mecir (Czechoslovakia) | Tim Mayotte (USA) | Stefan Edberg (Sweden)/Brad Gilbert (USA) |
Zverev is a member of an elite group that includes Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal, and Andy Murray.
But how did Zverev take gold at the Tokyo Games?
Alexander Zverev’s route to the Olympic gold medal
The German entered the delayed 2020 Olympics as the fourth seed, behind Stefanos Tsitsipas, Daniil Medvedev, and Djokovic.
Serbian legend Djokovic was the pre-tournament favourite, as the tennis world anticipated him ‘completing’ the sport by winning the one title that had eluded him.
Djokovic made a dominant start to his fourth Olympic campaign, reaching the semi-finals without dropping a set.
And Zverev matched him, setting up a mouth-watering semi-final clash.
With Karen Khachanov or Pablo Carreno Busta waiting in the final, Djokovic and Zverev’s semi-final was, in effect, the gold medal match.
Djokovic took the early lead, winning the first set 6-1, but Zverev fought back brilliantly, taking the second and third sets 6-3, 6-1, knocking the Serb out of the competition.
The German then dropped just four games in the final to win Olympic gold for the first time.
- 2020 Olympics 1R [WIN] vs (Chinese Taipei) Lu Yen-hsun, 6-1, 6-3
- 2020 Olympics 2R [WIN] vs (Colombia) Daniel Elahi Galan, 6-2, 6-2
- 2020 Olympics 3R [WIN] vs (Georgia) Nikoloz Basilashvili, 6-4, 7-6
- 2020 Olympics QF [WIN] vs (France) Jeremy Chardy, 6-4, 6-1
- 2020 Olympics SF [WIN] vs (Serbia) Novak Djokovic, 1-6, 6-3, 6-1
- 2020 Olympics F [WIN] vs (Russian Olympic Committee) Karen Khachanov, 6-3, 6-1
Zverev claims he wouldn’t trade that win for a Grand Slam title, and that’s understandable.
Still, he won’t want to pass up on this golden opportunity!
Alexander Zverev’s path to the Roland Garros title
Zverev’s ‘path’ opened up nicely when his two biggest rivals, Jannik Sinner and Djokovic, failed to reach the fourth round.
When Djokovic lost to Joao Fonseca in round three, Zverev became the clear favourite to take the title.
Refusing to let the pressure get to him, the world number three has remained focused on the task at hand, dealing with Jesper De Jong and Jodar in straight sets, as he booked his place in the final four.
There, he will play Fonseca or Czechia’s Jakub Mensik.
And in the final, Zverev will take on Matteo Berrettini, Matteo Arnaldi, Flavio Cobolli, or Felix Auger-Aliassime.
With all due respect to the talented players listed above, if Zverev is ever going to win a Grand Slam, now is the time.
Looking to reach his second Roland Garros final, Zverev will play Fonseca or Mensik in the semis on Thursday, June 4.
