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Alexander Zverev's mental strength came under scrutiny on Tuesday (April 29) as he exited the 2025 Madrid Open in the fourth round despite being the title favorite. Many fans on X (formerly Twitter) actively discussed the German's recent loss, which marked the fourth time this year that he has failed to reach the quarterfinals of an ATP Masters 1000 tournament.
Zverev put together a listless showing against 20th-seeded Francisco Cerundolo on Tuesday. The World No. 2 failed to break his Round-of-16 opponent's serve even once during their third career meeting, while also getting frustrated at a call made by the electronic line judge at one point during the match. He eventually succumbed to a 5-7, 3-6 loss to the Argentinian in one hour and 31 minutes.
A large section of the tennis community on X (formerly Twitter) proceeded to poke fun at Alexander Zverev for yet again failing to live up to his top billing at a big tournament this year. One fan went as far as to suggest that the 28-year-old was "easily the mentally weakest top player" they had seen on the men's tour.
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"Alexander Zverev is quite easily the mentally weakest top tennis player I've ever seen. Man wakes up terrified of his own shadow," the fan wrote on X (formerly Twitter)
Another fan found the German's fourth-round performance in Madrid to be so uninspiring that they wished for World No. 1 Jannik Sinner to be back soon.
"I can't wait for Sinner to be back on the courts next week. I'm sick of seeing Zverev as the number 1 seed. He was awful again today," they wrote.
A few fans also pointed out that the World No. 2's prospects to either win a Major title or lead the ATP Race to Turin rankings this year were in shambles after his fourth-round loss in Madrid.
"There are still people who believe Zverev is capable of winning a slam," one fan wrote sarcastically.
"generational fumble by zverev jesus," another fan suggested.
One fan, meanwhile, hilariously dunked on the three-time Major runner-up, inferring that Cerundolo, who now holds a 3-0 positive head-to-head record against Zverev, always channels his fellow Argentinian Lionel Messi's killer mentality whenever he faces the German.
Here are a few more reactions from social media:
"Love seeing him collapse during a match," one fan wrote.
"I don’t think he handles the title favourite card well," another asserted.
"Another day, another Zverev loss," one fan wrote.
Alexander Zverev to defend his Italian Open title next week
Alexander Zverev will be defending 2,300 ATP ranking points at his next two tournaments - the Italian Open and the French Open. The 28-year-old was struggling with going deep at big tournaments before Rome last year, where he won his sixth career Masters-level title in commanding fashion.
The German then reached his first-ever final at the French Open a few weeks later. Although he dropped the title match in five sets to an inspired Carlos Alcaraz, it punctuated the rest of his 2024 season that saw him rise to his career-high ranking of World No. 2 and secure his seventh and most recent ATP Masters 1000 trriumph at Paris-Bercy.
