On Thursday, October 29, Alexander Zverev officially secured the World No. 1 rank after defeating Tallon Griekspoor at the Vienna Open. Reacting to the German’s achievement, fans were left dismayed and they were quick to share their opinions on social media.
Zverev has enjoyed an incredible 2026 season. In June, the 29-year-old won his maiden Grand Slam title as he emerged victorious at Roland Garros, defeating Flavio Cobolli in the finals. Three months later, he added another Major trophy to his collection as he won the US Open. Soon after this, then-World No. 1 Jannik Sinner announced the end of his 2026 season due to injury and the Italian’s withdrawal guaranteed that Zverev would rise to the top spot in the rankings before the end of the year.
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Most recently, Alexander Zverev finally secured the World No. 1 ranking as he clinched a straight sets win over Tallon Griekspoor in the second round of the Vienna Open. Reacting to this moment, one fan on X mourned the German’s accomplishment as the ‘death’ of men’s tennis, writing,
“Men’s tennis is officially dead.”
Another fan referred to the allegations of domestic abuse against Zverev and wrote,
“I’m beyond disgusted, he belongs in a cell not on a tennis court.”
Here is how other tennis enthusiasts reacted to Zverev unlocking the World No. 1 rank:
“Propaganda I won’t fall for,” one fan wrote.
“Either he did witchcraft this season or he is very, very lucky. But this number 1 is not meritorious,” another added.
“We are all dead and this is h*ll,” one X user lamented.
“The culmination of narcissism, violence and domestic abuse,” yet another fan chimed in.
Alexander Zverev gears up for Vienna Open quarterfinal
On the tennis end of things, Alexander Zverev is now gearing up for the quarterfinal of the Vienna Open. The German kicked off his week at the event against Martin Landaluce, ousting the Spaniard 7-5, 3-6, 7-6(11). He then went on to defeat Tallon Griekspoor. Up next, he is slated to take on Arthur Fery as he battles for a spot in the final four of the tournament.
For his part, Fery has enjoyed a promising campaign in Vienna thus far. The Brit took on Jacob Fearnley for his opening round encounter at the event and was leading the match 5-1 when his opponent was forced to withdraw. For his second round match, Fery got the better of Italian star Lorenzo Musetti after a hard-fought three-set win.
Now, Alexander Zverev and Arthur Fery will return to action at the Vienna Open on Friday, October 30 for their quarterfinal encounter.
Edited by Riddhi Acharya
