Alexander Zverev suggests how high Alexei Popyrin could reach in the ATP rankings after beating him in Canada

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Alexei Popyrin’s Canadian Open title defence came to an end in the quarterfinals, losing out to the number one seed.

12 months ago, Popyrin defeated Andrey Rublev to win the Canadian Open, picking up his first career Masters 1000 title.

Looking to defend his title a year later, Popyrin advanced to the quarterfinals, picking up impressive wins over Daniil Medvedev and Holger Rune along the way.

Unfortunately for the Aussie, he failed in his bid to reach the semifinals, as Popyrin lost to Alexander Zverev in three sets 7-6, 4-6, 3-6.

Speaking to the media after the match, Zverev shared his thoughts on Popyrin’s level, as he predicted how high he could reach in the ATP Tour rankings.

Alexander Zverev thinks Alexei Popyrin could become a top-eight player on one condition

During his post-match press conference, Zverev commented on Popyrin’s success in Canada and suggested what he should do next.

“I think I said it kind of on the court already, he feels very comfortable here in Canada, so he needs to analyze what it is and why that is,” he said.

“If he can get that same level and that same quality of tennis to the rest of the tour, he can be a top-ten, top-eight player, fighting to qualify for Turin.

“Because he showed that this week. He beat [Daniil] Medvedev, he beat Holger Rune, he beat so many great players. Last year, he won the tournament.”

Zverev believes Popyrin has the potential to one day qualify for the ATP Finals in Turin, an event attended by the top eight players in the world.

Popyrin currently sits 43rd in the ‘Live ATP Race’, leaving him a lot of work to do if he wants to qualify for the 2025 tournament.

To close the near 2,000-point gap to the qualification places, Popyrin will need to replicate the form he shows in Canada elsewhere on the ATP calendar.

Zverev believes the difference in level is just ‘too big’ right now for Popyrin to become a top-eight player.

“So there is something here in Canada that he finds that brings out the best in him. If he can analyze it and take that to the rest of the year, he has a massive game; he can fight for big things. He can fight for making Turin, he can fight for being consistently a top-ten player,” he said.

“But he needs to analyze what it is and why that is. Because the difference in level is just too big, right?

“Between when he’s playing really well, like he is here, and when he’s not playing so well. So if he can narrow that down a little bit, there’s no reason why he cannot be a top player.”

Reacting to Zverev’s comments, Popyrin shared what he intends to improve upon in the future.

Alexei Popyrin reacts to Alexander Zverev’s comments

When told that Zverev had said that the Canadian Open version of Popyrin is ‘feared’ by the rest of the ATP Tour, Popyrin provided an interesting response.

“I think I’ve shown it in the past. I appreciate the comments, obviously. I think it’s always nice to be feared on tour,” he said.

“For me, it’s the consistency aspect that I need to get better at.

“I keep saying it every time, this week’s been great, I’m known to have a couple good weeks a year, but I want to have more and more good weeks, and hopefully they can fear me all the time, not just on my good weeks.”

In 2024, Popyrin had another ‘good week’ at the US Open, when he knocked out 24-time Grand Slam champion Novak Djokovic in the third round.

He’ll no doubt hope for more of the same this time around, at statistically his most successful Grand Slam tournament.

Popyrin will first turn his attention to Ohio and the Cincinnati Open, which begins on Monday, August 11.

The Australian will head to Cincinnati as the number 22 seed, looking to improve upon his first-round exit in 2024.