Roger Federer made a prediction about Alexander Zverev in 2017 which he hasn’t quite been able to live up to

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Alexander Zverev has once again fallen short in a Grand Slam final, with Jannik Sinner the latest to issue heartbreak on the German.

Zverev congratulated Sinner on his success, with the Italian having beaten the former 6-3, 7-6(7-4), 6-3 in the Australian Open final.

Boris Becker thinks Zverev was ‘nervous’ before the Melbourne clash, which represented the latter’s third Grand Slam final.

And like the 2020 US Open and 2024 French Open finals, Zverev was once again on the receiving end of a disappointing defeat.

He does, however, remain ATP number two following his run in Melbourne, and boasts 23 tour-level titles at the age of 27.

Roger Federer predicted Alexander Zverev to ‘carry’ tennis in 2017

One of those titles came at the 2017 ATP Masters 1,000 Canada, where a 20-year-old Zverev secured a final victory over legendary figure Roger Federer.

Sharing his thoughts on the German in his final press conference at the event, the Swiss star said: “Well, he’s been playing well, but he has to do this for a whole year.

“For the time being he’s in good shape. He’s healthy. He’s motivated. He has a lot of confidence. I like his game. He has a big game. He serves well. He has a great backhand. I like his backhand.

READ MORE: John Isner and Sam Querrey agree over which Grand Slam Alexander Zverev is most likely to win after his Australian Open final defeat

“Now we’ll see what happens for the rest of the year. He had a lot of success already. Five titles in one year is not easy. What he does is great.”

Wildcard Denis Shapovalov meanwhile also caught the eye at the tournament, with Federer also asked for his verdict on the next generation of players.

“Well, I mean, I loved watching Denis play,” he said. “I think he had the matches of the tournament, with all these great three-setters that he had, especially the one against Rafa [Nadal]. I think he caught the attention of the tennis world, and rightfully so. I really enjoyed watching him.

“Alexander has been around for a while now. Not a whole long time. But at this level, I’ve gotten to play him already now for the fourth or fifth time, practiced a ton with him. We know each other well.

“I’m just really happy for him, to see that he’s taking everything not just to the next level, but the two next levels, winning two Masters 1,000s. It’s extremely difficult to win. He’s won two this year.

“It’s a wonderful achievement for him. I wish him the best for the coming months and hope he can finish the season very strong because there’s opportunities now.

“Yeah, I’m sure there’s going to be up-and-coming players. Still wish there was going to be a bigger group of 18 or 20-year-olds, 22-year-olds.

“But we have some good guys, which is great for the game. They’re going to carry the sport to a better place in the future.”

Alexander Zverev admitted Jannik Sinner is ‘better’ than him after Australian Open final

It was a simply stunning year from Zverev, who was even denied further success in 2017 by Federer at Halle.

But the youngster still managed five titles overall, with fellow rising star Shapovalov having reached the semi-finals in Canada before losing to the German.

Now 25 and ranked 53rd in the world, Shapovalov has won two ATP titles since that moment, failing to really live up to the high praise from Federer.

READ MORE: Novak Djokovic sends messages to both Alexander Zverev and Jannik Sinner after their Australian Open final

And the same can undoubtedly be said of Zverev who, despite his success, has failed to win a Grand Slam title and is now witnessing the next generation surpass him.

First and foremost, legendary trio Federer, Nadal and Novak Djokovic all stayed around to continue carrying men’s tennis, leaving the German behind.

And he is now in real danger of history repeating itself amid the presence of Sinner and Alcaraz, with Zverev even admitting his standing with the Italian.

Speaking in his losing Australian Open final press conference, the world number two said: “In general, Jannik is better than me at the moment. It’s as simple as that.

“I think I served better than Jannik, and everything else he does better. So at the end of the day he deserves to win. He’s the best player on hard courts right now. It’s as simple as that.”