Mark Petchey has offered Alexander Zverev some advice to improve his chances of winning Roland Garros this year.
Zverev is a former Roland Garros finalist, and was actually one set away from winning his first Grand Slam title in the 2024 final against Carlos Alcaraz.
With Alcaraz withdrawing from Roland Garros already this year, Zverev’s chances of winning an elusive major title appear to be greater than ever.
However, Petchey, who has coached Emma Raducanu on a temporary basis, believes that Zverev needs to make an important decision to help his chances in Paris.
Mark Petchey tells Alexander Zverev not to play in Hamburg ahead of Roland Garros
Zverev has only had one week not playing a tournament in the past 10 weeks, having reached the latter stages of Indian Wells, the Miami Open and now the Madrid Open.
Despite this, Zverev is still entered into the Italian Open and the Hamburg Open ahead of Roland Garros this year.
Zverev previously claimed no top player would compete in Hamburg, as it is in the week before Roland Garros, but he did take a wildcard for the tournament last year.
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When discussing Zverev on the latest edition of The Big T Podcast, Petchey claimed that he needs to withdraw from the Hamburg Open to give himself the best chance at Roland Garros.
“Definitely not [play] Hamburg,” said Petchey. “He played last year because he was desperate for confidence even though he made the quarters here and the round of 16 in Rome.
“He was looking for something ahead of Roland Garros and I don’t think it was the best decision he made. I think he needs to make sure that week is clear. I think he will go in there with a good run from the bottom part of the draw.
“He needs to give himself the best chance. He knows how to play tennis. The most important thing for Sascha is a clean first week. He does not want to be getting into four or five set matches in the first week. He has got to leave himself with enough energy.
“We saw it in the final against Alcaraz a couple of years ago, when he dropped off, after being up two sets to one. So I think for him that week needs to be clear.
“I have no problem with him giving it all out for Madrid and Rome ahead of that. That would be my take. I think he is hitting the ball well enough, just make sure the prep is great.”
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Zverev has particularly struggled against Sinner as of late, having lost to the world number one three times already this year.
However, after Alcaraz pulled out of Roland Garros, Zverev now looks on track to be the second seed for the Paris major and would avoid Sinner until at least the final.
Zverev is currently in a good position to achieve this and could confirm he is the second seed over Novak Djokovic if he wins the Madrid Open title.
| Race to be the second seed at Roland Garros | Alexander Zverev | Novak Djokovic |
| Live ranking total | 5355 | 4700 |
| Points defending ahead of Roland Garros seeding cut-off | 200 | 0 |
| Maximum points to be gained ahead of Roland Garros seeding cut-off | 1800 | 1000 |
The German is a two-time former champion in Madrid, and Zverev is now three wins away from winning a third title.
Zverev will play Flavio Cobolli for a place in the semifinals, and he leads the head-to-head against the Italian.
However, Cobolli beat Zverev when they played most recently at the BMW Open in Munich.
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