Alexander Zverev’s recent comments at the Shanghai Masters have sparked plenty of debate on social media.
After coming through his opening-round match with Valentin Royer, Zverev criticised the ATP, claiming they are favouring the world’s top two players, Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner, by making every court on tour the same speed.
Sinner recently replied to Zverev’s words, saying he and Alcaraz ‘don’t make the courts’, and disagreed with his take on the similarity in court speed at different tournaments.
The German has been blasted by many for his theory, but some fans have come to his defence and feel there is a double standard in the reaction he received compared to that of similar comments made by Roger Federer.
Fans cite double standard in reaction to Alexander Zverev’s words
In an interview during the Laver Cup, Federer essentially made the same point as Zverev when suggesting that tournament directors are choosing court surfaces best suited to helping Sinner and Alcaraz reach finals.
The Swiss legend never came under the same scrutiny for his claim, however, which one tennis fan said was “proof that people just love to hate on Zverev.”
They explained: “He and Federer said the exact same thing, and nobody batted an eye or slaughtered Federer for his comment. Zverev backs him up, and now he’s a sore loser, liar, etc. Crazy double standard.”
Another fan argued: “I know I’m gonna get grilled, but explain to me why you all defended Federer less than two weeks ago when he stated exactly the same ridiculous opinion that Zverev repeated today about slowing down the courts to get more sincaraz matches?”
One X user questioned: “Although Zverev reiterated the point Roger Federer made about court speed these days, he has drawn negative responses. Why can we not treat the point as an opinion expressed by two tennis players – one retired and another still playing – and move on?”
Finally, this fan concluded: “Everyone is going to have a pop at Zverev, and rightly so, but this started with Roger Federer a couple of weeks ago on Andy Roddick’s Served pod.”
What other stars have said about the court speed in Shanghai
Zverev is not alone in his assessment of the court speed in Shanghai, with most stars agreeing it is slower than in previous years.
US number one Taylor Fritz said the event had made a ‘very bad change’ this year by changing the surface, and stated: “It feels like the ball is not going anywhere.”
Alex de Minaur said the conditions were the ‘slowest on tour’, and described the court as ‘very different’ to what he played on in past seasons.
The Shanghai Masters, which is the penultimate ATP Masters 1000 tournament of the season, was once considered to be an event with quick hard courts.
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