Alexander Zverev, who has been struggling with form and personal problems this season, has asked coach Ivan Lendl to focus more on his tennis than he does at the moment. The German said that the Czech former player seems to talk more about golf and his dog than on his game.
“We talked about it and I told him to concentrate on tennis more,” Zverev was quoted saying by Tennis.com via German wire agencies at a press conference in Hamburg. The world No 5 returns to action on clay at the ATP 500 tournament in Hamburg on Tuesday after a first-round defeat at Wimbledon.
The 22-year-old has been suffering to recreate his form from the last season but had had a poor year so far with a string of early losses. The problem, partly, has been off-court issues with his family and agent which he said affected him on-court. However, he is also keen to have more time and attention from his coach.
“Sometimes we go to the tennis court, the training is two hours long, and for half-an-hour he stands with his back to me talking about the way he played golf the morning before,” Zverev said.
Lendl, who guided Andy Murray to world No 1, is not seen with the German at all tournaments. He skipped the entirety of the clay season and will not be in Hamburg either.
The second seed will instead have his father Alexander Sr, who has his been training him throughout his career, with him. However, Zverev is said to have confirmed that he is still working with Lendl. He will take on Bastad winner Nicolas Jarry in his first-round match.
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