Alexander Zverev will be one of the rackets to watch this week at the Cincinnati Masters 1,000. The German, winner of Olympic gold in tennis at the Tokyo 2020 Games, returns to competition as the third seed in the last major tournament before the US Open, where he will seek his first Grand Slam title after losing to Dominic Thiem in the final of the last year.
Zverev himself was very excited about what he achieved in the Tokyo Olympics in the press conference prior to the tournament but also stressed that he cannot anchor himself in it and is already looking at future goals. “What if I am on a cloud? Yes a little bit. Winning this medal is the greatest thing that can happen in any sport because the Olympics are so special, You do not compete only for yourself, you also compete for many people. It is a very special feeling. But I have to play again, so I must forget that feeling and start working and competing again. I'm very hungry, I'm not satisfied yet. “
The German hopes that he will change his streak of results in the last major tournament before the US Open and wants to show his great 2021 season also on the North American tour. “I am happy to be here in Cincinnati and looking forward to turning the tide of how this tournament has been delivered to me. I am eager to compete and prove that I am one of the best players. I know I'm having a good year and I'm happy with it, but now I have to face a Masters 1,000 and then a Grand Slam, which are two very important and very big tournaments. “
Zverev also celebrated the return of the public to the courts after last year's Cincinnati Masters was played without an audience in New York in the US Open bubble.. “It makes me very happy to see people, because I have always said that sports need spectators, spectators transmit emotions to us. It is fantastic to see the fans back. It's great to see life slowly return to normal. I think a lot of people have missed this. “