Alexander Zverev congratulated his buddy Andrei Rublev with a big hug and then trudged disappointed to great applause from Center Court in Dubai. The Olympic champion missed his first final after his serious injury. The 25-year-old lost to the defending champion from Russia 3-6, 6-7 (9-11) on Friday and could not use the chance to reach the 31st final of his career. Nevertheless, Zverev can point to visible progress.
"He played really well. It was a super intense tie-break and I was expecting to go into the third set," said Rublev after a top-class match, especially in the second set. Both players have known each other for many years. "He was always something of a big brother to me," Rublev said.
This time it was not enough for Zverev, who lost for the first time in the professional field after a previously perfect record with 5-0 wins and 11-0 sets against Rublev.
Zverev's confidence had grown noticeably over the course of the tournament. "After such an injury, I'm happy where I am now," he had said after winning several matches in a row for the first time since the momentous misstep at the French Open 2022: "I'm slowly coming back and playing decent tennis this week."
Against Rublev, Zverev made too many avoidable mistakes, especially in the first set, and had problems after his second serve. He improved in the second round and fought in a long tie-break for the set equalizer. Zverev fended off five match balls with courageous tennis, but could not secure the chance to win his 20th title.