Alexander Zverev’s campaign at Indian Wells ended in disappointment as the world number two suffered a shock defeat to Tallon Griekspoor in his opening match. The German, who was the top seed at the prestigious ATP Masters event in California, admitted that his poor form has completely shifted his focus away from challenging Jannik Sinner for the world number one ranking.
With Sinner serving a belated three-month suspension for a doping violation, Zverev had initially seen an opportunity to claim the top spot. However, following a string of early exits in Buenos Aires, Rio de Janeiro, and Acapulco, his confidence has taken a hit.
“Now, I think about it less because I’m just playing terribly,” Zverev admitted after his 4-6, 7-6(5), 7-6(4) defeat to world number 43 Griekspoor, who had lost six of their previous seven meetings.
Zverev is the first top seed in the men’s draw at Indian Wells to lose his opening match since Andy Murray in 2017.
“I need to find my game before thinking about becoming world number one because to get there, you have to win tournaments,” he said. “Right now, I’m not making it past the first or second round, so I need to sort that out first.”
Zverev could not pinpoint a specific reason for his struggles since his runner-up finish to Sinner at the Australian Open. Before the tournament, he had cited illness as a factor in his disappointing South American swing, where he battled through two weeks of sickness.
However, following his latest defeat, the German was more direct: “I’m just not playing at the level I want to. I’m nowhere near what I showed in Australia.”
Zverev had appeared to be on course for victory after taking the first set and then rallying from 2-5 down in the second to serve for the match at 6-5. However, he failed to close it out, eventually losing in two tiebreaks.
Despite saving five match points in the 12th game of the third set, Zverev couldn’t hold off Griekspoor in the final tiebreak.
“He played a good match, there’s no doubt about that,” Zverev said. “But I need to look at myself a bit.”
The 26-year-old admitted that his struggles extend across his entire game.
“My first serve needs work, my shots from the back of the court need work – it’s everything,” he conceded. “I keep working, but right now, it’s just not clicking.”
