Alexander Zverev continues his 2025 season at Indian Wells this week, where he faces a tough opener against Tallon Griekspoor.
Zverev had an injury scare at the Rio Open, where he suffered a quarter-final exit, having also lost at that stage of the Argentina Open.
Following that, Learner Tien beat Zverev in the Mexican Open round of 16, all of which came after he reached the Australian Open final.
Zverev lost to ATP number one Jannik Sinner in Melbourne, with the Italian then handed a three-month suspension.
He is, therefore, absent from Indian Wells, meaning world number two Zverev is the top seed in California.
Alexander Zverev backs ‘very talented’ Joao Fonseca to break ATP top 10
Also taking part in Indian Wells is rising star Joao Fonseca, who has been handed a wildcard for the ATP Masters 1000 event.
And sharing his thoughts on the 18-year-old Brazilian, Zverev said in his pre-tournament press conference: “It’s almost the best time, because everything seems so easy.
“You know, you’re kind of seeing a tennis ball, seeing the guy across from you at the net, and there is no thoughts behind anything else.
“He’s very young, very, very talented, he’s going to be a great player, for sure. I think he can be top 10 and maybe even further than that.
“But yeah, I think when you’re young, you’re kind of swinging freely, you’re enjoying your time on the professional circuit for the first time, and there is no pressure. So yeah, I like what I’m seeing from him. I think he’s a great player.”
Asked what he likes about Fonseca’s game, the German replied: “Well, he has tremendous power from both sides. He has quite a good serve.
“I think he has to work a lot on his movement still. But generally, he has a lot of power, and I think it’s interesting to see.”
Alexander Zverev happy with his season so far ahead of Indian Wells
Zverev has unsurprisingly been left really impressed by the teenager, who won his first ATP title at the Argentina Open.
Fonseca has been compared to Carlos Alcaraz, with the Brazilian having already risen as high as 68 in the world rankings.
He does, however, have a tricky test first up at Indian Wells, with rising British star Jacob Fearnley his opponent in round one.
READ MORE: America has its own future star who is just five places behind Joao Fonseca in the ATP rankings
Zverev meanwhile remains very much focused on his own tournament, having been asked how difficult the transition is from clay courts to hard courts.
“Transition is okay,” he said. “It’s not that difficult for me. It was really about feeling well. You know, again, two out of the last three weeks, I wasn’t feeling great. Acapulco, also, a lot of players got ill there.
“It was a bit of an unfortunate tournament, because I felt like, especially after the first round, okay, maybe I got through a tough match, and I can go deep in the tournaments.
“But then it hit me in that night, same as a lot of other guys. Yeah, I mean, I still feel positive. I still think I had a good start to the season.
“If you look back at Australia, I reached another Grand Slam final. But of course, I want to find my rhythm again and I want to win tennis matches again.”
And when asked if he is back to normal, he said: “Yeah, right now I feel good. It took some time, but I feel well.”
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