Former World No.1 Marat Safin thinks there is currently one young player moving up the ranks who has what it takes to potentially dominate the sport.
Safin: “For me, Zverev, I think. Plus he has a good coach, [Juan Carlos] Ferrero. He was a good player and has done good work with him.”
Safin and Ferrero were amongst a group of players who dominated the tour for a brief period in the prelude to the emergence of Roger Federer in the early 2000s.
Safin pointed to existing evidence, including rankings to support his backing of Zverev, though he refused to be drawn on other names. “He is number four in the world, so he can manage, so let’s see. The rest [of the young stars], we’ll wait for next year.”
Zverev, 20, had a breakthrough year, finishing in the Top 10 for the first time. This was largely as a result of a strong performance on the ATP tour, highlighted by his capture of two Masters 1000 titles in Rome and Montreal, defeating Novak Djokovic and Roger Federer in the finals respectively.
Despite his success, Zverev largely failed to impress at grand slam level. He failed to reach a quarter-final, and suffered early exits at Roland Garros and the US Open against unseeded opposition.
