Alexander Zverev is enjoying a phenomenal season on the ATP Tour.
The German finally captured a Grand Slam title that had eluded him his entire career at Roland Garros, beating Flavio Cobolli in the final to hoist the trophy.
Zverev then reached the final of Wimbledon, by far his best result at the Championships, ultimately falling to Jannik Sinner.
How would you rate Alexander Zverev’s chances of winning the US Open?
With Carlos Alcaraz sidelined due to injury, Zverev‘s results have seen him leapfrog the Spaniard to become the new world number two, matching his career-high ranking.
But former Roland Garros semifinalist Andrea Petkovic believes he can go one step further and become the world number one for the first time.
Andrea Petkovic tips Alexander Zverev to become world number one
Speaking to Sport1, Petkovic said: “I think that window of opportunity is definitely there [to become the world number one].
“If Sascha continues where he left off at Wimbledon, the chance is absolutely there. Of course, Sinner and Alcaraz will continue to set the tone, so it will be anything but easy.
“At first, I had the feeling that the old and the new Alexander Zverev were on the court at the same time.
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“The longer the season went on, the more the new style of play prevailed. Wimbledon finally showed me that he now completely believes in this game.
‘This is no longer a short-term adjustment, but his new identity on the court. He is more mature, more robust today and knows very well which path he wants to take.”
How far Alexander Zverev is off Jannik Sinner in the rankings
Zverev currently has an ATP points tally of 8480, 420 more than Alcaraz in third place.
But he is still a fair bit off Sinner in first, with the world number one sitting atop the pile with a total of 13,450 points.
Sinner’s withdrawal from the Canadian Open will not affect his sum, but Zverev would lose 400 points if he also decided to pull out of the ATP Masters 1000 event.
Both Zverev and Sinner have plenty of points to protect in Cincinnati, with the two defending 400 and 650 points respectively.
The US Open is where Zverev will have the chance to close in on Sinner.
Zverev is defending just 100 points in Flushing Meadows having bowed out in the third round of the hard-court major last season.
Sinner, on the other hand, is defending 1300 after making the final in 2025.
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