Alexander Zverev's brother Mischa makes his frustrations clear after German's Madrid Open controversy
Alexander Zverev has sparked controversy at the Madrid Open after criticizing a disputed line call that went against him and cost him a crucial point. His brother, Mischa Zverev, has now weighed in on the issue, offering his full support.
Zverev came into Madrid riding high after a title win at the BMW Open in Munich and began his campaign with a win over Roberto Bautista Agut, before facing another Spaniard, Alejandro Davidovich Fokina. The line call controversy unfolded during his tight 2-6, 7-6(3), 7-6(0) win over Fokina.
At one point in the second set, the German grew frustrated when he believed his opponent had hit a ball wide. He walked over to the umpire’s chair, urging Mohamed Lahyani to come down and check the mark. When Lahyani refused, he pulled out his phone to photograph the spot and received a warning for his actions.
"Look at this mark. Please just come down, look at it. Don’t overrule it, please. Just come down, please. Just for me,” he pleaded despite the automatic Hawkeye system confirming the ball had landed on the line.
Mischa Zverev later weighed in on the controversy on Instagram, insisting the ball was clearly out. He also criticized the system, saying chair umpires should have the power to overrule a Hawkeye call and called the incident a "terrible mistake."
“Mark is posted..... system needs to be recalibrated..... and chair umpires should have the power to overrule... otherwise it's silly, terribly mistake,” Mischa Zverev wrote.
Alexander Zverev later shared a photo of the ball mark on his Instagram Stories with the following caption:
“Just gonna leave this one here. This was called in. Interesting call.”
Alexander Zverev refuses to blame umpire Mohamed Lahyani after Madrid Open controversy
Alexander Zverev has offered clarification regarding the controversial line call in Madrid and why he kept urging umpire Mohamed Lahyani to step down from his chair and inspect the mark.
Speaking during his post-match press conference, Zverev said:
"It's not the chair umpire's fault because if as a rule he can't come down, he can't come down. So it's not Mohamed's fault, but I will talk to the supervisors, I will talk to the ATP, because as I said, this is not normal. For an error like this to happen, yes, one or two millimeters I understand, but four, five centimeters is not normal."
"I believe there was a failure in the system itself, and when something like this happens, perhaps the chair umpire should be able to come down, but it's not the chair umpire's fault. The referee can't do anything. What can he do? If as a rule he can't come down, he can't come down," he added.
Not just Zverev, even players like Aryna Sabalenka and Victoria Azarenka recently raised concerns about similar line-calling issues at the Madrid Open.