Alexander Zverev suffered yet another damaging defeat to Jannik Sinner last night, dumped out of the Miami Open at the semi-finals stage.
It marked a disappointing end to what was a strong campaign from the 28-year-old, who simply could not unsettle the Italian even whilst playing some exceptional tennis.
Likely the biggest indicator of how frustrating this process was for Alexander Zverev was his mid-match argument with the chair umpire, which seldom occurs for a player in the ascendancy.
Considering Zverev has accused tennis of altering to favour the likes of Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz, it felt like this complaint fell under a similar umbrella of favouritism accusations.
Alexander Zverev argues with chair umpire during Miami Open loss
Having lost the first set despite playing incredibly well, and with the scores level at 3-3 in the second, Zverev was issued a time violation by umpire Greg Allensworth.
This had already been a frustrating enough match, given Sinner’s impenetrable level, and further pushback from the match referee was not going to help matters.
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Unsurprisingly, the three-time Grand Slam finalist did not react well to this ruling, with the umpire defending his decision after issuing the second warning: “The two times you went over, you weren’t waiting on him.”
Zverev argued: “I was. I know which ones you’re talking about… on the Ad side. I was.”
In the end, this spat proved inconsequential, as Sinner was just too good. He won 6-3, 7-6 (X) to secure his spot in the Miami Open final.
Alexander Zverev has unwanted record vs Jannik Sinner extended
Whilst exiting in any semi-final is a blow, for Zverev, to lose again to Sinner will make this one sting even more.
After all, he already had a torrid record against the former world number one, and that has only been extended after last night’s Miami Open match-up.
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In fact, the German has now lost his last seven matches against Sinner, last tasting victory in 2023.
This unwanted record, as well as his similar inability to regularly trouble Carlos Alcaraz, shows exactly why his ultimate goal of winning a major title is so unlikely.
It’s also disheartening to see such a brutal result not long after Zverev insisted he would win a Grand Slam, and that it could even be this year.
