‘He Deserves the Sanction’- Rafael Nadal’s Honest Reaction to Alexander Zverev’s Major Meltdown at ATP Acapulco

Rafael Nadal spoke out about Alexander Zverev’s recent actions, calling it an ‘unfortunate act’. He criticized Zverev’s unsportsmanlike conduct, as he went on to push back against the authority’s decision to disqualify him from the tournament. 

After winning his 21st Grand Slam at the 2022 Australian Open, Nadal is back on the court in Acapulco. Winning the first two rounds with ease, Nadal is in the quarterfinals of the ATP 500 Abierto Mexicano Telcel. He will play American Tommy Paul in the quarterfinals, eyeing his 4th title on the hardcourt tournament. 

Nadal spoke about Zverev’s incident in the post-match conference after his 2nd round win against Stefan Kozlov.

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Rafael Nadal condemns Zverev’s actions

Rafael Nadal criticized Zverev’s actions, calling it an unfortunate act. He said, “It’s an unfortunate act, without a doubt, and I feel sorry for him because I have a good relationship with Alexander.”

He went on, speaking about the official’s decision to disqualify Zverev, and hoped that Alexander Zverev learns a lesson from this. “In the end, I think he deserves the sanction because you can’t act this way. I think Sascha is aware of that and I hope he this will serve as a lesson for him and for other young people who sometimes also lose their nerves on the track.”

Supporting his statement, Nadal went on talking about the ATP’s move, calling it a logical act. “It is logical that the organization that governs our sport makes itself respected and makes respect for Chair Thursdays and sport in general.”

Even though Rafa restrained himself from commenting on the fairness of the sanction, he didn’t shy away from commenting on the act, urging a stoppage of the same. “I am not going to enter into what is fair or not fair at the level of sanctions. But in the end, you do have to stop a little that type of attitude that becomes a little more fashionable “.

Alexander Zverev’s aggressive act

Alexander Zverev had teamed up with Brazil’s Marcelo Melo to compete in the Doubles draw of the ATP 500 Acapulco Open. The two started their tournament campaign facing the Lucky Loser pair of Lloyd Glasspool and Harri Heliovaara in the first round. 

The Zverev-Melo duo had a shaky start as they lost the first set 2-6. However, not willing to exit the tournament in the first match itself, they made a strong comeback, winning the second set 6-4. One set all, the match went into a super tie-breaker. Both the teams went on neck-to-neck, leaving no stone unturned to win the super tie-breaker.

It was 6-8 in the super-tiebreaker when Zverev was angered by an umpiring call he felt should have been called ‘out’, but on the contrary, was called ‘in’. Citing the disputed call, Zverev hurled abuses towards the umpire, going on to lose the last set 10-6. 

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Post the customary handshake between the teams, Zverev smashed his racquet on the umpire’s chair multiple times. He further went on to abuse the empire.

Seeing his unacceptable actions, tournament authority took no time to announce Zverev’s disqualification from the tournament.