French Open: Alexander Zverev downs Tallon Griekspoor in five-set thriller
What's the story
Men's singles number four seed Alexander Zverev clinched a five-set thriller against Tallon Griekspoor at the 2024 French Open. With this victory, Zverev reached the fourth round. The German star lost the first set 3-6 before winning the next two 6-4, 6-2. Griekspoor made a comeback to claim the fourth set 6-4. The fifth set was a tie-breaker as Zverev won 7-6(10-3).
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Here are the match stats
Zverev doled out 10 aces compared to his opponent's four. Both players committed five double faults each. Zverev had a 69% win on the first serve and a 65% win on the second. He won 5/18 break points.
Numbers
91-32 win-loss record at Grand Slams
Zverev has raced to a 91-32 win-loss record at Grand Slams, including 31-8 at Roland Garros. The German has reached the fourth round for the seventh successive season in Paris. He reached three successive semi-finals from 2021 to 2023. Overall, Zverev has been a six-time semi-finalist at Grand Slams in addition to being a one-time finalist. He is yet to win a Slam event.
Form
His form in 2024
Zverev started with a semi-final exits at Australian Open and Los Cabos Open respectively. He suffered an early exit at Mexican Open before reaching the quarters at Indian Wells Open. In Miami, Zverev reached the semis. At Monte-Carlo Masters, he was ousted in R16. He reached the quarters at Bavarian International. Zverev lost in the quarters (Madrid Open). He won the Rome title thereafter.
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4-1 win-loss record over Griekspoor
With this win, Zverev has extended his run against Griekspoor on the ATP Tour. Zverev leads the head-to-head tally 4-1 across five meetings. This was their second meeting at a Grand Slam event (also 2021 Wimbledon) with Zverev winning both.
Stat attack
Key stats for Zverev
As per Opta, Zverev has won nine consecutive matches on clay in ATP events for the first time since winning 13 between Munich-Madrid-Rome in 2018. He won six matches at the Italian Open and three now in Paris. Zverev now owns a 9-1 five-set record at Roland Garros. He hit 55 winners and committed 41 unforced errors against Griekspoor.