Alexander Zverev's girlfriend's Wimbledon no-show explained after he admitted he felt ‘alone' and 'empty' before exit
And the German bad-boy admitted he might need therapy after he felt "alone" and "empty" during his early exit.
5
Controversial Zverev became the biggest casualty on the men's side so far at Wimbledon when the third seed crashed out 7-6 6-7 6-3 6-7 6-4 to France's Arthur Rinderknech on Centre Court, in a match played over two days.
But the No3 seed's partner Sophia Thomalla was not in his box for either day.
According to news outlet BILD in his homeland, influencer and television presenter Thomalla was busy filming commercials back home.
And Zverev, 28, who has been at the heart of two allegations of domestic abuse - both denied - in recent years, opened up on his mental struggles on and off the court.
He said: 'I feel very alone out there at times. I struggle mentally.
'I'm trying to find ways to get out of this hole but keep finding myself back in it.
'Generally speaking, I feel quite alone in life at the moment, which is not very nice.'
Unheralded Rinderknech showed no mercy, falling forward to lie face-first on the turf in sheer joy after he unleashed a mid-court backhand pass to secure the biggest victory of his career.
And a devastated Zverev admitted: 'Maybe for the first time in my life I'll probably need therapy.
'I've been through a lot of difficulties. I've never felt this empty before.
Celebrities arrive for day three of Wimbledon, including Thomas Tuchel and Dave Grohl
5
Wimbledon 2025 LIVE - follow all the latest scores and updates from a thrilling fortnight at SW19
'Just lacking joy, just lacking joy in everything that I do. It's not necessarily about tennis. Just lacking joy outside of tennis, as well.
'Even when I'm winning, even when I'm winning like in Stuttgart or Halle, I'd not getting the feeling I used to get, when I was happy, over the moon, motivated to keep going. It's just not there right now for me."
Zverev lost his third Grand Slam final at the Australian Open in January.
But he has struggled for form since - wasting his chance to become the world No1 during Jannik Sinner's drugs ban, suffering a string of shock defeats to players with far lower rankings before his Wimbledon upset.
5
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Wales Online
25 minutes ago
- Wales Online
Wimbledon ace's net worth way bigger than King Charles and David and Victoria Beckham combined
Wimbledon ace's net worth way bigger than King Charles and David and Victoria Beckham combined David Beckham and his wife, Victoria, are thought to be worth £500million, while King Charles has a fortune of around £640m – but a Wimbledon star is worth far more than both combined King Charles III and David Beckham each have an astonishing net worth (Image: WPA Pool, Getty Images ) Jessica Pegula's net worth is five times greater than that of Sir David Beckham and King Charles III combined, despite the fact she has yet to secure a Grand Slam title. Beckham, a legend of Manchester United and English football, was knighted for his contributions to football and charitable work, as announced in the King's Birthday Honours list last month. The 50-year-old has amassed a considerable fortune from his exploits both on and off the pitch. Together with his wife, Victoria Beckham, the former midfielder has accumulated a net worth of approximately £500million, according to the Sunday Times Rich List. While a large chunk of Beckham's wealth stems from his professional football career, his post-playing ventures such as his DRJB Holdings company have also significantly bolstered his finances. Victoria, on the other hand, first gained fame with the Spice Girls, who remain the best-selling female group of all time, before transitioning into the fashion industry. Their combined wealth is just £140m short of King Charles III's reported private net worth of £640m. Together, the Beckhams and England's monarch have a total net worth of just over £1billion, yet this pales in comparison to the fortune Pegula stands to inherit, reports the Express. This is because the WTA world No. 3 is the daughter of Terry and Kim Pegula, owners of the Buffalo Bills in the NFL, the Buffalo Sabres in the NHL, and the Buffalo Bandits in the NLL. Article continues below Terry and Kim Pegula have an incredible fortune (Image: Bill Wippert, NHLI via Getty Images ) While Jessica has amassed an impressive £13m in career prize money through her own tennis achievements, it's a drop in the ocean in comparison to the staggering £5.1bn inheritance she is set to receive from her parents. Her father, Terry, made his fortune in the oil industry, working for Getty Oil and Felmont Oil Co before establishing East Resources, a company specialising in natural gas drilling. He later sold assets from Pennsylvania, New York and the Rocky Mountain areas to Royal Dutch Shell for a whopping £3.4bn. The 74-year-old then sold the Ohio and West Virginia assets of the company to American Energy Partners for another £1.2bn. Pegula had high hopes of securing her first Grand Slam title at Wimbledon this summer, but unfortunately, it wasn't meant to be. The 31-year-old didn't make it past the first round at SW19 in the singles competition, suffering a 6-2, 6-3 defeat to Elisabetta Cocciaretto on Tuesday. Jessica Pegula is worth a fortune (Image: Getty ) Since she didn't participate in the doubles or mixed doubles events, her tournament journey has now ended. However, the New York-born star has previously come tantalisingly close to major victory. Article continues below Pegula has reached the quarter-finals of the Australian Open three times in the singles competition, and also made it to the same stage once each at the French Open and Wimbledon in 2022 and 2023 respectively. However, her most impressive Grand Slam performance was at last year's US Open, where Pegula reached the final. Regrettably, victory eluded her. In the decisive match, she was thwarted by WTA No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka, who clinched a 7-5, 7-5 win, denying Pegula her first major title. Her attention will now shift to next month's US Open.
The Sun
42 minutes ago
- The Sun
‘Please, no… no way' – Alphonso Davies watches in horror as Bayern team-mate Jamal Musiala suffers sickening injury
JAMAL MUSIALA'S Bayern Munich teammate Alphonso Davies was left with his head in his hands begging "please, no" as he watched the midfielder suffer his sickening injury from afar. Musiala, 22, was stretchered off with a suspected fractured fibula following a collision with Paris Saint-Germain goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma during the Club World Cup last night. 14 14 14 14 14 14 14 Musiala got his leg caught underneath Donnarumma at the end of the first half, seeing his ankle bent out of shape when coming out of the other side of the tackle. The German international was screaming and writhing in pain as he came out of the other side of the entanglement. Players on the pitch were visibly upset by the horrendous injury, while Donnarumma burst into tears as he watched Musiala get carried off the pitch in Atlanta. Meanwhile Davies, who was watching from home as he recovers from his own cruciate ligament injury, was in shock at the injury to his teammate and best friend. The Canadian full-back, who often live streams himself watching the games for fans, was clearly distraught at the injury. Reacting to the injury on stream he screamed "no" multiple times before pleading that the injury wasn't as bad as it looked, saying: "please, no... no way". Sky Germany have reported that Musiala is suspected to have fractured his fibula and damaged multiple ligaments in his leg. Since the injury multiple Bayern Munich players have posted messages of support for Musiala on social media. 14 14 14 14 14 Manuel Neuer wrote: "We gave it our all. You could see how badly we wanted that win. But right now, all that matters is Jamal. "Wishing you a speedy recovery, brother – we're all with you." Speaking in a post-match interview, Thomas Muller recalled: "You could tell immediately that something very bad had happened. 'It didn't look good. You could see during the first half his intensity, how much he loves playing football. "In a situation like this, thoughts should centre around Jamal. And let's be careful that we don't have tasteless conversations after someone has been injured like that.' While PSG's Donnarumma sent his well-wishes to the star after being involved in his injury. He wrote: "All my prayers and well wishes are with you @jamalmusiala10" The match ended in a 2-0 victory for PSG, meaning the European champions have now booked their spot in the Club World Cup semi-finals. The Parisiens fielded the same starting 11 that had won the Champions League seven weeks earlier in Bayern's stadium, with the exception of Bradley Barcola replacing Dembele in the front three. In the final 12 minutes of normal time and 11 minutes added on, PSG scored twice, had two men sent off and then saw a penalty awarded against them at the death overturned on review by English referee Anthony Taylor. Willian Pacho was sent off for a lunge of Leon Goretzka, and PSG substitute Lucas Hernandez soon followed him for a mindless elbow on Raphael Guerrero. But PSG held on, and Ousmane Dembele sealed victory deep into stoppage time to put them a step closer to being crowned kings of the world as well. They will now face Real Madrid in the Club World Cup semi-finals on Wednesday. For Bayern, their journey in the US is over, and the conclusion of their season also means the conclusion of club legend Thomas Muller 's time with the Bavarian club - bringing an end to his 17-season spell in Munich. 14 Club World Cup 2025 Guide SOME of the world's biggest clubs are in action at this summer's Club World Cup in the United States! Chelsea are keeping Premier League hopes alive in the big tournament which is on until the final at New Jersey's Metlife Stadium July 13. Though Manchester City have been knocked out by Saudi Pro side Al-Hilal after losing in a 4-3 thriller. INFO Everything you need to know about the Club World Cup LATEST NEWS & FEATURES
Telegraph
43 minutes ago
- Telegraph
Wimbledon succession crisis looms after Rufus the hawk fails to breed
For 17 years, the grounds of Wimbledon have been kept pigeon-free by Rufus the hawk. The raptor is so effective at patrolling SW19's skies, that bosses at the championships want his descendants to eventually replace him. But a so-called 'succession plan' is in doubt after its handler revealed Rufus had no offspring and had recently failed to breed. Donna Davis, who has overseen Rufus's near two-decade reign over Centre Court, said the hawk had not taken a liking to Pamela, its mate-to-be. The 58-year-old falconer said: 'They didn't hit it off. Pamela was quite aggressive. It wasn't love at first sight. But maybe we can try breeding with him again in the future.' This is not the birds first failed mating attempted, prompted questions over his sexuality. Asked whether Rufus might be gay, she said: 'There's every possibility. I don't think it's that unusual [among birds].' Earlier this week, it was reported Scampi and Flounder, a pair of male penguins, raised a chick that had been rejected by its parents at Chester Zoo. The bird of prey, whose services are also employed at Westminster Abbey, the Old Bailey and Lord's cricket ground, was raised in Brigstock, Northamptonshire, and has been working at Wimbledon since he was 16 weeks old. His reconnaissance of the grounds begins at around 5am and finishes at 9am. He starts sweeping the outside courts and Court 1 before flying into Centre Court. Ms Davis said hawks' reversed size dimorphism – where females are bigger than males – means Rufus is better-suited to getting into the nooks and crannies of courts to scare away all the pigeons. 'Initially the whole reason we were here was because [Pete] Sampras was having to bat pigeons off the baseline,' she said. 'I was thinking, I'm going to have to give them a call and help them out.' Ms Davis said pigeon numbers can potentially be problematic because they breed all year-round and can do so from the age of just 12 weeks. She joked that she can no longer enjoy watching tennis during the championships, for fear of seeing a pigeon making a guest appearance. 'You'll always get somebody saying 'oh my god Rufus is not doing his job,' she said. 'They think he's going to annihilate anything on sight.' Ms Davis, who has been handling birds since she was 15 as a keen birdwatcher and loves tennis, said her teenage self would think she had 'hit the jackpot' with her current job. 'That's what it feels like when you combine your two loves together,' she said. 'There's such a bonanza of wildlife around, so I'm able to combine my love of ornithology with tennis in the most pristine of grounds.' She lauded the return of the 'ancient art' of falconry, having briefly been replaced by guns. 'It's come back as the most natural deterrent,' she added. On Rufus' personality, she said: 'You can't be anthropomorphic about it but I believe he sees me as one of his pack. 'I'm his food source, so of course I'm one of his pack. I do feel as though in areas where we've been out in fields and crows have bombarded me, he's come in to get the crows. 'So he is very protective of me but that's because I'm his food source, not because he loves me.'
