Imagine gearing up to make a sensational leap in your athletic career, only to feel sidelined by the very person meant to guide you. Sounds like a nightmare, right? For Alexander Zverev, it wasn’t just a bad dream; it was reality. Back in 2019, he pulled back the curtain on his rocky relationship with his former coach, the legendary Ivan Lendl. 

His parents, who also are former tennis players, majorly coached Zverev since when he was young. His mother was initially his primary coach before his father took over at some point. The German tennis sensation witnessed quite a fascinating year under the tutelage of his father, Alexander Zverev Sr. He clinched three titles besides taking the runner-up spot at the French Open. Before reuniting with his father, Zverev explored various options, including renowned players like Juan Carlos Ferrero and David Ferrer. He also teamed up with tennis legend Ivan Lendl in 2018, but the partnership was short-lived. Why?

In a candid interview with a German publication Die Welt in 2019, Zverev expressed his disappointment with Lendl, revealing that the former world No. 1 was more preoccupied with personal pursuits, such as golf and his dog, than with coaching him.

The greatest German tennis hope had said of the 59-year-old coach: “Sometimes we go to the training ground. Training lasts two hours. For half an hour, he stands with his back to me and tells me how he played golf that morning. He’s got a new dog and is showing him how to go to the toilet. That’s really his main topic. And golf.” The current number five in the world then “told Lendl openly that a lot of things will change.” Two years later, he opened up on his differences with Lendl. 

In an interesting interview with the Tennismagazin in 2021, Zverev remarked, “Papa is better than Lendl. For me, that’s not a question at all. I think it was an experience for me to see what and how other coaches think about my tennis.” Continuing further, he added that the duo did not share the same vision for the sport.

“It didn’t work out well with Lendl. It’s not a secret. Personally, we may not have been a good match either. We just saw things differently on the tennis court during training sessions. I am someone in my sport too, I am a personality. I am not someone who says yes and amen to everything. I also challenge opinions very often. I always ask why do you see it that way and sometimes say, but I see it differently. You can’t join my team and turn my life and career upside down just because you have a different opinion than me,” Sacha added. Lendl had echoed the same sentiment while parting ways with Zverev.

“I have a lot of faith in Sascha, and above all he is still very young. And I believe that one day he could become a great player,” said Lendl, adding critically: “But at the moment he has some issues off the court that make it difficult to work with him in a way that I can reconcile with my philosophy,” the then-59-year-old had said.

Fun fact: The impact of Zverev’s collaboration with Lendl was almost instant. Within just two months, the 21-year-old sensationally defeated Novak Djokovic to win the ATP Finals and claim the unofficial world champion title.

But now, as the world No. 2 gears up for the next year, he is looking forward to adding someone new to his team, with Boris Becker being his top preference.

Alexander Zverev opens up on probable partnership with Boris Becker

Alexander Zverev has depicted immense skills over the years but is now looking forward to receiving a fresh perspective on the sport from someone outside of his family. For him, the primary choice remains veteran player Boris Becker, although there are certain concerns impacting their probable partnership. 

Speaking about it with Tennis Magazin on December 10th, Zverev said, “The right person has to be there. I won’t just take anyone just because I or others think it’s right, I did it, I tried to work with many people. But I found that only one person really helped me a lot.” But despite being keen to partner with Becker, Zverev revealed that there are some concerns about how much can the former German player travel with him. 

“I love Boris and I also believe that he has an incredible knowledge of tennis,” he said, adding, “But I don’t know how he feels about travelling. That’s the only question mark for him. As soon as he has solved and clarified that, we can talk about it.” Now, as he moves forward, it would be interesting to see if his desires turn out to be true and if Becker partners with him to boost his skills.