"Can a pro athlete be sportswashed?" - Alexander Zverev's march to French Open QF amid domestic abuse trial prompts concern from tennis journalist
Alexander Zverev's run at the French Open continues. The German edged Holger Rune in a five-set thriller that started on Monday, June 3, and went late into the night at Stade Roland Garros' Court Philippe Chatrier. However, tennis journalist Ben Rothenberg voiced his concern on the World No. 4's French Open progress amid the German's ongoing domestic abuse trial in a Berlin court.
Zverev's ex-girlfriend Brenda Patea, who also happens to be his daughter Mayla's mother, moved Germany's justice system last year, alleging that the German had pushed and strangled her during a heated argument between the pair in 2020. Patea also claimed that Zverev's abuse made it difficult for her to swallow for several days in the aftermath of the incident.
Berlin's Tiergarten District Court slapped the German with a penalty order and a fine amounting to almost €500,000. However, Zverev appealed against the court's decision, which, under German law, meant that a public trial would ensue. The trial got underway on Friday, May 31. However, on the very first day of the trial, Zverev's defense requested the presiding judge to move proceedings behind closed doors. The court has approved the request.
Meanwhile, Zverev, seemingly unaffected by the legal battle he is locked in against his ex-girlfriend, sealed his French Open quarterfinal spot after registering a 4-6, 6-1, 5-7, 7-6(2), 6-2 win over Rune. Amid Zverev's run, journalist Ben Rothenberg has once again raised his voice against the German's French Open participation on X (formerly Twitter).
Rothenberg is the one who brought Zverev's personal life into mainstream focus after sharing Olya Sharypova's story with the world across 2020 and 2021. Sharypova, who was Zverev's girlfriend before his involvement with Patea, claimed that the German had abused her on multiple occasions.
"Update: This is all still deeply grim. Nothing remotely redeeming or enjoyable about it. Zverev should not be playing," Rothenberg wrote.
The journalist also pondered if a professional athlete like Zverev can be "sportswashed".
"Pondering: Can a pro athlete be sportswashed?" asked Rothenberg in another post.
"Tennis authorities chose not to bench Alexander Zverev due to moral rot" - Ben Rothenberg
Zverev started his 2024 French Open campaign against Rafael Nadal, the most successful player in the history of the claycourt Major. However, the German went into the match as the favorite, owing to his title triumph at the Italian Open.
Ahead of the match, which eventually saw Nadal possibly bid his farewell to Roland Garros, Rothenberg expressed his disapproval of the contest. According to the journalist, the situation looked "grim" at the time, considering the likelihood of Nadal being ousted by Zverev, who, in Rothenberg's opinion, should have been "benched" by tennis authorities.
"Don’t know about y’all but I’m finding this occasion quite grim! Nadal looking on track to take just his fourth loss at #RolandGarros, by far his earliest by round, against a man whom tennis authorities really should have benched right now but chose not to due to moral rot. Bad!" Rothenberg wrote on X.
Zverev is set to face Alex de Minaur in the quarterfinals. The winner of the match will square off against either Novak Djokovic or Casper Ruud.