"I'm 24 years old, so my career isn't done yet" - Alexander Zverev
World No. 3 Alexander Zverev overcame a slow start during the early stages of his ATP Cup opener to come out on top against Great Britain's Cameron Norrie in straight sets on Sunday.
Alexander Zverev faced a set point on his serve, down 5-4 in the first set, but was able to dig deep and turn things around. He eventually registered a 7-6(2), 6-1 win to level the tie for Team Germany. Zverev later partnered Kevin Krawietz in the deciding doubles fixture, which was ultimately won by Team Britain's Dan Evans and Jamie Murray.
Doubles delight 🇬🇧
Daniel Evans and @jamie_murray overcome Krawietz and Zverev to give tie honours to #TeamGB.
#ATPCup https://t.co/rBHe6mvhhV
Alexander Zverev usually thrives when he dons his national colors, as seen in his campaign at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. The German was in scintillating form at last year's Olympic Games, defeating World No. 1 Novak Djokovic in the semifinals en-route to securing a gold medal for his country. In that context, Zverev was asked to shed some light on his experience at last year's Olympics during the post-match interview following his victory.
In response, Zverev asserted that no achievement in sports is more sought-after than winning a gold medal at the Olympics. The German also claimed that there was much more to come from him, considering he's just 24.
"There's nothing in sports bigger than Olympics, so I'm happy to come out with a gold medal. I'm 24 years old, so my career isn't done yet, so we'll see what else can happen," Alexander Zverev said.
Zverev also insisted that his Olympic experience was "really special" as he shared a great rapport with his fellow German athletes at the quadrennial event last year.
"You're not only playing for yourself, you're playing for your nation. The Olympics was really special because we were such a great group of athletes there." Alexander Zverev said. "All the people are supporting each other, and you know, every single day watching sports that you don't, maybe, usually watch."
"It's the first match of the season, it's never gonna be the best match" - Alexander Zverev
During the interaction, Zverev was also asked to evaluate his patchy performance at the start of the match. The German was admittedly happy to scrape out a victory for his country despite not playing very well.
Sealed with an ace 🎯
@AlexZverev keeps #TeamGermany's tie hopes alive with a 7-6(2), 6-1 victory over Cam Norrie.
#ATPCup https://t.co/zzNHpPm5rz
"Yeah, it's the first match of the season, it's never gonna be the best match. You know, I'm happy that we leveled the tie," Alexander Zverev said. "We're here as a team, we're trying to win, I did what I needed to do..."