3 days ago
Alexander Zverez pulls out of upcoming tournament citing 'personal reasons' after suggesting he might need therapy following Wimbledon exit
World No 3 Alexander Zverev has pulled out of an upcoming tournament because of 'personal reasons'.
Zverev was due to take part in the latest ATP tournament in Switzerland, with the clay-court competition to take place later this month and the draw set for this weekend.
He suffered a shock defeat in the first round of Wimbledon, falling in five gritty sets to world world No 72 Arthur Rinderknech, with the final score 7-6 (3), 6-7(8), 6-3, 6-7(5), 6-4.
Their contest played across two days after their match on the first Monday night was paused due to the Wimbledon curfew.
And the 28-year-old has not played since, with fans concerned for his welfare due to his words on the back of his defeat.
Now, he has withdrawn from the tournament in Switzerland, with competition organisers announcing the news.
'I feel very alone out there at times. I struggle mentally,' Zverev shared after his SW19 defeat. 'I've been saying that since after the Australian Open.
'I'm trying to find ways, trying to find ways to kind of get out of this hole. I keep kind of finding myself back in it in a way.
'I feel, generally speaking, quite alone in life at the moment, which is a feeling that is not very nice.
'It's not a feeling on a tennis court, it's just a life feeling in general,' he continued. 'As I said, I never felt this way before. It's difficult to find joy outside the tennis court for me at the moment.
'It's not an excuse or anything. I think Arthur deserved to win today. It's nothing that. It's something I've felt for the past few months.
'Again, I just feel generally very, very alone and very lonely. I don't know. Just never felt that way before. I don't have the answers right now.
When asked if he had considered therapy, he added: 'Maybe for the first time in my life I'll probably need it.
'I've been through a lot of difficulties. I've been through a lot of difficulties in the media. I've been through a lot of difficulties in life generally.
Zverev said he had 'never felt this empty before' after losing in the first round of Wimbledon
'I've never felt this empty before. 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, it's not necessarily a feeling that I used to get where I was happy, over the moon, I felt motivated to keep going.
'It's just not there right now for me, which, again, is the first time in my life which I'm feeling.'
Zverev did not have the support of his girlfriend Sophia Thomalla to draw upon during his shock first-round defeat, reports in Germany have confirmed.
The No 3 seed has struggled for form in the wake of the Australian Open final he played against eventual champion Jannik Sinner in January.
As per German outlet BILD, Zverev's defeat came while Thomalla, an influencer and television presenter, was reportedly filming commercials in their native country.
