Alexander Zverev has hit out at his coach Ivan Lendl regarding the amount of commitment he is investing in their partnership.
The German has been working with the eight-time grand slam champion since August and has won two ATP titles under his guidance. Including the biggest trophy of his career at the ATP Finals in November. However, Zverev has experienced mixed results on the tour in recent weeks. At Wimbledon he crashed out in the first round to Jiri Vesely.
Speaking to reporters ahead of the upcoming European Open in Hamburg, the 22-year-old confirmed that he has requested Lendl to show more commitment. Saying the Czech has been spending a lot of time with a new dog.
“Sometimes we go on the practice court. The training is over two hours. And for half an hour he stands with his back to me and tells me about his round of golf,” Zverev replied when asked if he would like his mentor to focus more on him.
The conversation between the two took place shortly after Zverev’s exit from Wimbledon. It was the first time he has lost in the opening round of a major since the 2017 French Open and the first time he has ever done so at Wimbledon.
“We talked about it, and I told him that he should focus more on tennis.” He said.
Besides Lendl, Zverev has also been engaged in a tense off-court dispute with his former manager. He split with Patricio Apey during the off season at the end of last year, but the two have since been locked in a legal battle. With Apey reportedly arguing that the contract between the two was valid until 2023. Zverev has previously admitted the legal case has had a negative effect on his tennis.
“Hopefully this issue won’t be an issue any more soon,” he explained.
“It will become clearer over the next days. Everything will be slowly cleared up so that I can completely concentrate on tennis again.”
So far this season the world No.5 has achieved a win-loss record of 25-14. In February he reached the final of the Acapulco Open before losing to Nick Kyrgios. Then in May he claimed his first and so far only title of 2019 in Geneva.
Zverev is set to be the second seed in Hamburg next week. He is one of three top 10 players set to play along with Dominic Thiem and Fabio Fognini.
