Alexander Zverev has secured a spot in the Madrid Open round of 16, having just knocked out Alejandro Davidovich Fokina.
Zverev was booed by the fans in his Madrid Open meeting with Fokina, which he won 2-6, 7-6(7-3), 7-6(7-0) after two hours and 44 minutes.
He is the top seed at the ATP Masters 1000 tournament, which takes place on clay courts in the Spanish capital.
Zverev was labelled ‘unbelievable’ after the BMW Open final last week, which the German won on home soil before heading to the Madrid Open.
World number two Zverev, who just turned 28 last week, is now into the last 16 after beating two home players in Spain.
Alexander Zverev predicts ‘big things’ for Alejandro Davidovich Fokina
He defeated Roberto Bautista Agut in his opener before overcoming Fokina, with Zverev full of praise for the latter after their clash.
As per Tennis TV, the German embraced the Spaniard at the net and said: “Keep your head up. Big things are coming for you. You’re playing the best tennis of your life.”
Alexander Zverev surpasses Rafael Nadal after latest Madrid Open win
Fokina has impressed this season, with the 25-year-old currently occupying 29th place in the ATP Tour rankings.
He has lost two finals in 2025 so far, narrowly losing out at the Delray Beach Open and the Mexican Open.
Zverev meanwhile has continued his impressive form at the Madrid Open, with 25 wins from his first 30 matches at the event.
As per OptaAce, he is behind only Roger Federer (26), and ahead of Rafael Nadal (24), Novak Djokovic and Andy Murray (both 23).
It is a competition he has won twice in his career so far, with a third success certainly possible this time around.
Zverev lifted the trophy in both 2018 and 2021, defeating Dominic Thiem and Matteo Berrettini respectively.
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