Alexander Zverev had already secured the World No. 1 ranking by reaching the quarterfinals at the Vienna Open. He lost his chance at the title when he was beaten 6-4, 1-6, 7-6 (4) by Alex de Minaur in Saturday’s semifinal at the Wiener Stadthalle. Most of the reaction afterwards centered on a clip of him holding a tennis ball out toward the chair umpire.
The German complained about the balls several times during the match and said he felt they were bouncing too high. At a changeover early in the first set he approached umpire Arnaud Gabas and asked whether it was normal to play with those balls in a tennis tournament. Video of the exchange spread quickly, and most of the replies criticized him.
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One fan slammed Alexander Zverev for making excuses, writing on X,
“Zverev making excuses again? Consider me shocked! Guy complains literally any time something isn’t going his way. Notice this is RIGHT after he got broke on serve.”
Another X user called the German ’embarrassing’, writing,
“He didn’t complain as long as he was winning. Embarrassing No. 1.”
Here is how other tennis enthusiasts reacted to Alexander Zverev’s complaints about the balls during his semifinal encounter against Alex de Minaur at the Vienna Open:
“Such a c*cky way to address the situation. Not surprising though, there’s always some excuse when the score is not in his favor,” one fan wrote.
“He thinks he is the only player in this tournament?” another added.
“I mean, both players use the same ball,” one X user commented.
“Death, taxes, Zverev crying about the balls when he’s losing a match,” yet another fan chimed in.
Why Alexander Zverev’s ball argument landed badly with fans
The fact that fans criticised Alexander Zverev for his complaints about the balls at the Vienna Open does not mean that the balls were fine. Ball consistency has been a subject of argument on the men’s tour for years, and Zverev has been one of the players raising it. Other stars, including seven-time Grand Slam champion Carlos Alcaraz, also questioned the Vienna balls during the week, so the complaint was not his alone.
What led fans to criticise the German was the timing of his complaints. On the other end of the court, Alex de Minaur played with the same balls and found a way to attack with them. However, Zverev finished the match with 31 unforced errors and he faced eight break points in the first set while his serve was unreliable. De Minaur created 14 break points across the match and converted one, the break that decided the opening set. Many fans read the complaint about the equipment as an excuse rather than an explanation.
During the same match, Zverev also stirred controversy for other actions. Serving at 5-6, 40-40 in the deciding set, two points from defeat, Zverev was given a time violation for bouncing the ball many times before his serve, a habit that he has previously faced extensive criticism for, especially during the US Open earlier this year. He argued the call and umpire Gabas eventually withdrew it. The German held for 6-6 with a service winner, then lost the first three points of the tiebreak and the match.
Alexander Zverev will become No. 1 on Monday regardless of his semifinal loss at the Vienna Open, overtaking Italy’s Jannik Sinner for the top spot. According to the AP, the 29-year-old is the oldest first-time No. 1 since 1974.
Edited by Riddhi Acharya
