Fatigued Zverev says he ‘overachieved’ by making Shanghai semi‑finals
World number two Alexander Zverev admitted that his run to the semi‑finals of the Shanghai Masters was an over‑achievement given the fatigue from a packed schedule. The 29‑year‑old top seed fell in the last four on Saturday, losing 5‑7, 6‑4, 6‑3 to Spain’s Alejandro Davidovich Fokina – only his second win in eight meetings with Zverev.
Germany’s Zverev, who is set to finish the year as world number one, has had little time to recover after a whirlwind of events that included the US Open, the Laver Cup, the Beijing Masters and the Shanghai tournament. “I feel like I’ve actually, in a way, maybe overachieved this week because of how much tennis I played,” he told reporters. “I carried a little bit of injury, I carried fatigue into the tournament, and I’m OK to lose to a player like this today.”
Repeatedly exposed on his forehand side, Zverev surrendered his first break of the match to a beautiful backhand passing shot, allowing Davidovich Fokina to force a deciding set. The Spaniard broke again to go 2‑0 up in the third set and held on to claim his first ATP Masters 1000 final since 2022.
After a straight‑set victory over Alex de Minaur in the quarter‑final, Zverev said he has struggled since his fourth‑round win over Alexander Bublik, which went to a third‑set tiebreak. “First, I’m not a robot, I’m a human being, I get tired,” Zverev said. “After the US Open, I had one day off in total. I think I played a lot of tennis, which is very, very positive because that means I played well. I think even here I had tough matches. I personally feel like I was quite flat since the Bublik match, because I was losing energy. I played a phenomenal match against Alex de Minaur, but today I was flat. Even in the first set, even though I won the set, I was flatter, I was not reacting so well. I was returning quite badly. We’re all human beings, even the best players in the world.”
Zverev’s semi‑final loss is a rare blemish on an otherwise stellar season that saw him capture his first Grand Slam at the French Open in June and a second at the US Open in September. Davidovich Fokina will meet fellow Spaniard Rafael Jodar in the final on Sunday.
Related news: Kartal reaches Wuhan final as dream week continues (published three days ago). Serb player banned until 2050 for tennis match‑fixing (published five days ago). Zverev secures year‑end number one ranking (published 12 October).