'%20x='0'%20y='0'%20height='100%25'%20width='100%25'%20%0A%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20xlink%3Ahref='data:image/jpg;base64,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'%3E%3C/image%3E%3C/svg%3E)
Alexander Zverev suffered a second-round upset in front of his home crowd at the 2025 Hamburg Open on Wednesday (May 21), losing to France's Alexandre Muller in three sets. Many in the tennis community subsequently poked fun at the German while talking down his prospects of winning a Major anytime soon.
Zverev was the favorite to win the ATP 500 tournament in Hamburg this week as the top seed. However, the 28-year-old started his second-round outing against World No. 40 Muller in less-than-ideal fashion on Wednesday, dropping the opening set 3-6. He was quick to strike back in the second, breaking the Frenchman twice to win it 6-4.
In the deciding set, both players struggled to capitalize on their chances; while Alexandre Muller wasted an early break lead, Alexander Zverev returned the favor by not making the most of the 5-3 lead he took in the deciding-set tiebreaker. The World No. 3 ultimately dropped the match 3-6, 6-4, 6-7(5) in two hours and 42 minutes to crash out of the Hamburg Open. Fans on X (formerly Twitter) and Reddit dunked on the German following his shock loss, which also doesn't bode well for his French Open aspirations later this month.
Trending
"Zverev so washed, this loss is the exact reason why he will never win a slam!!!!!" the fan asserted on X.
A few others claimed that Zverev wasn't likely to defend his runner-up points in Paris from last year.
"Another failed vulture-job. Just what the doctor ordered for his confidence heading into the French," one fan joked.
"Zverev ain’t defending final points at RG lmao," another insisted.
Here are a few more reactions from the tennis community on social media:
"Muller tried so hard to blow this but Alexander Zverev's shit tennis would not be denied," one fan asserted.
"This is even better than most Zverev losses because Hamburg is his home city," another insisted.
"Zverev's confidence is just shot, plain and simple... There's no aggression, no will-power, and no belief. He is finished," one more fan argued.
Alexander Zverev has endured a tough season on the ATP Tour since his runner-up finish at the Australian Open in January, having dropped nine of his 28 matches since then.
Alexander Zverev fell down from career-high World No. 2 ranking this week
In 2025, Alexander Zverev has also failed at making a dent in the men's field as far as big tournaments are concerned. The German didn't go past the Round-of-16 stage at the first five ATP Masters 1000 tournaments of the year. That said, he did win his 24th career title at the BMW Open last month in commanding fashion.
More importantly, the 28-year-old surrendered his World No. 2 ranking to Carlos Alcaraz, owing to both his inability to defend his 2024 Italian Open crown and the Spaniard reigning supreme at the 2025 edition of the Masters-level event. As a result, he will now be seeded third at the French Open.
