Alexander Zverev to enter Montpellier Open 2022 as a wildcard after Felix Auger-Aliassime's last-minute withdrawal

Alexander Zverev at the 2022 Australian Open

World No. 3 Alexander Zverev will be a part of the ATP Montpellier Open 2022, which will kick off right after the end of the Australian Open. The German player confirmed his participation on Thursday and will enter the tournament as a wildcard.

Breaking News 🔥🎾 Alexander ZVEREV (n3 ATP) participera à l’Open Sud de France - Montpellier la semaine prochaine
@AlexZverev @atp @Occitanie @montpellier_ https://t.co/DGBwJxxTY5

Felix Auger-Aliassime, who lost to Daniil Medvedev in the quarterfinals of the Australian Open, was supposed to lead the field as the highest-ranked player at the Montpellier Open. But the Canadian withdrew from the tournament on Thursday, and Zverev's last-minute entry will now make him the top seed.

This will be the 35th edition of the Montpellier Open, which will take place from 31 January to 6 February 2022. Belgium's David Goffin is currently the defending champion of the tournament, which is played on indoor hardcourt.

Go Go Goffin 👏

@David__Goffin wins his first title since 2017, beating Bautista Agut 5-7 6-4 6-2 in Montpellier! https://t.co/8ueqhuXwYl

Interestingly, Alexander Zverev has won the tournament once before in his career, back in 2017. The current World No. 3 defeated France's Richard Gasquet in straight sets in the final for what was just his second title on the ATP tour.

Zverev also battled past another Frenchman - former Australian Open runner-up Jo-Wilfried Tsonga - in the semifinals.

2nd ATP title! Alexander #Zverev wins Montpellier title beating defending champion Richard Gasquet 7-6 6-3! https://t.co/lNGNvmjkbD

In addition to Zverev, three-time winner Gael Monfils and and Spain's Roberto Bautista Agut are the other star players who will headline the tournament this year.

Alexander Zverev looking to bounce back from his disappointing Australian Open campaign

Alexander Zverev at the Australian Open 2022

Alexander Zverev had quite an underwhelming run at the 2022 Australian Open, losing to World No. 14 Denis Shapovalov in the Round of 16. The German failed to take even a set against Shapovalov, going down 6-3, 7-6(5), 6-3.

🇨🇦 Denis Shapovalov upsets world no. 3 🇩🇪 Alexander Zverev in straight sets at the #AusOpen! https://t.co/31pUKijTJS

Zverev hadn't lost a single set in his first three matches at the Happy Slam. But he believes that apart from the match against John Millman, he played "bad" tennis throughout the first week.

"I was playing bad the whole week," admitted Zverev in his press conference after losing to Shapovalov. "To be honest, I didn't think I was playing that great. Except against John Millman maybe I had a good match, but the other two matches weren't great either."

Zverev is coming off a very successful 2021 season, where he won six ATP titles - including two Masters trophies, the ATP Finals, and the Olympic gold. The German was widely considered one of the favorites to win the Australian Open, especially in Novak Djokovic's absence, but he failed to live up to the expectations.

Interestingly, Zverev also lost the chance to reach the No. 1 spot in the ATP rankings, which he could have done if he had won the tournament. But after getting eliminated in the pre-quarters, the 24-year-old will now lose 190 points instead and thus remain at his current position of No. 3.