Alexander Zverev survived a scare at the Rolex Monte-Carlo Masters, battling back to avoid a second consecutive first-round exit. He overcame Cristian Garin 4-6, 6-4, 7-5 in a match lasting two hours and 50 minutes. Zverev had to rally from a double break down in the third set to secure the win.
Zverev Acknowledges Form After Hard-Court Swing
Zverev admitted his performance wasn’t at its peak. He cited the quick transition from a strong hard-court swing and limited preparation time on clay as contributing factors. “My level wasn’t there at all, but it’s the first clay-court match in 11 months and I didn’t have much time to prepare because I played well in the hard-court swing,” Zverev said. “I wasn’t feeling the ball so I didn’t feel like I could hit aggressive shots. But the most important thing is to get the win.”
Garin has proven a difficult opponent for Zverev in the past, winning two of their previous three encounters. This included a victory in the 2013 Roland Garros boys’ final.
Garin’s Decisive Loss of Nerve
Garin appeared to be heading for another victory, taking a commanding 4-0 lead in the final set. However, Zverev mounted a comeback, capitalising on Garin’s inability to serve out the match at 5-4. Garin faltered, shanking a forehand and double-faulting to fall behind 0/30 before netting a backhand drop shot on his second break point.
More errors followed as Garin surrendered another break, including a fifth double fault and another netted drop shot attempt. Zverev then had to fight off three break points to finally close out the match on his third attempt. The German netted two forehand volleys in the final game but strong serving when it counted – and a clutch, low backhand volley on the final point – proved decisive.
Looking Ahead
Zverev, a two-time semi-finalist in Monte Carlo, lost his opening match last year to Matteo Berrettini. Next up for Zverev is a match against Zizou Bergs, who is ranked 40th in the world. Bergs defeated Andrey Rublev 6-4, 6-1.
Bergs said he was very pleased to rediscover his aggressive tennis. “I was very pleased to re-find aggressive tennis without doubting too much,” Bergs said. “It’s been a while since I have played like this.”
Fifth seed Arevalo and Pavic also advanced.