PARIS – Everyone agrees: Roland Garros 2026 is Alexander Zverev’s moment.
Carlos Alcaraz’s injury, the heatstroke suffered by Jannik Sinner, and the decline of Novak Djokovic place the German right under the spotlight as the Parisian tournament enters its decisive phase. But! There is always a “but” with Zverev: now he will have to deal with his greatest ghost—the psychological weight of coming so close only to leave empty-handed.
If one thing has become clear over the last few years, it is that Zverev is a serious contender for the crown of ‘best tennis player to never win a Grand Slam.’ That list includes illustrious names such as Marcelo Ríos, David Ferrer, Tomáš Berdych, Robin Söderling, Álex Corretja, and David Nalbandian. A two-time ATP Finals champion, seven-time Masters 1000 winner, and Olympic gold medalist at Tokyo 2021, the 29-year-old Zverev has never managed to lift a Grand Slam trophy. It is a topic that haunts him. In every tournament, in every interview, there is always a question about that blank space in his resume.
The closest he ever came was at the 2020 US Open, his first Grand Slam final, where he collapsed mentally while on the verge of victory. He squandered a two-set lead and a break up in the third, ultimately falling 2-6, 4-6, 6-4, 6-3, 7-6 (8-6) to Dominic Thiem. In the Roland Garros final against Carlos Alcaraz, he led 2-1 in sets but ended up losing in the fifth: 6-3, 2-6, 5-7, 6-1, 6-2. And at the 2025 Australian Open—his third and most recent final so far—he fell 6-3, 7-6, 6-3 to Jannik Sinner. In those three finals, Zverev was never the favorite. Now in Paris, with the men’s draw completely wide open, all the odds are in his favor.
Is that a good thing or a bad thing? The German was asked exactly that. “I’ll give the same answer I gave two days ago. I’ll focus on the matches that are ahead of me. This is the only thing I can control. I focused on de Jong, I played a good match. I’m going to focus on Jódar next,” Zverev said about his quarterfinal opponent, Spain’s Rafael Jódar. The 19-year-old is the tournament’s breakthrough sensation, reaching his first-ever Grand Slam quarterfinals. The match will take place this Tuesday, third on court at the Philippe Chatrier, the center court of Roland Garros.
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“He is under unbelievable pressure right now. He has more pressure than in any other tournament he has ever played, more pressure than in his entire career,” the great John McEnroe stated this Sunday during a panel on TNT Sports. “I always say it, he is the best player in history without a Grand Slam, and right now he doesn’t have to beat any of the likes of Alcaraz, Djokovic, or Sinner…”
Another former world No. 1, two-time Roland Garros champion Jim Courier, spoke recently about Zverev’s consistency and what the German needed to do to finally capture a Major. “We all know what he is trying to achieve at a Grand Slam. He should draw inspiration from Stan Wawrinka. We all remember Wawrinka was a very good player who became an elite player almost at 30 years old, after adding power to his forehand and working on his serve with Magnus Norman. In the end, he became a three-time Grand Slam champion. So it is possible. And I don’t think ‘Sascha’ is going to retire until he gets it,” Courier told a small group of media outlets, including CLAY.
“‘Sascha’ knows what he has to do: keep playing decisive, aggressive tennis at all times. If he does that, he’ll have an opportunity, because he is constantly putting himself in what we call the business end of these tournaments, the second week. He just needs to stay there and take his chances.”
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The hands of Müller-Wohlfahrt
Zverev is proving to be the most consistent player in this edition of the French Major: he has barely dropped a set and has not found himself against the ropes at any moment. The world No. 3 has always moved remarkably well on clay, and this year, despite entering with some doubts, his back is giving him a truce thanks to the hands of doctor Hans-Wilhelm Müller-Wohlfahrt.
Dubbed the “Miracle Doctor” after more than 50 years treating and curing athletes—legends like Usain Bolt, Kobe Bryant, Sebastian Vettel, and Ronaldo Nazário have passed through his clinic in central Munich, alongside countless football players from Bayern Munich and the German national team—Müller-Wohlfahrt has always maintained that his hands possess skills not taught in conventional medicine. Word must have reached Zverev when his back caused him immense misery during the 2025 season. In December, they booked an appointment: “He gave me 77 injections somewhere, and they helped,” Zverev said with a smile in January during the Australian Open.
Zverev competed completely pain-free in his back during the first months of the season. However, the pain returned during the clay-court swing. And so did the injections. After Rome, Zverev returned to Munich to visit the physician’s office. “The back problems started last year and I had a really hard time. After the treatments in December, I felt wonderful, but at the Munich tournament, it started to bother me again and I struggled quite a bit. After Rome, I went back to see the doctor, had two more sessions, and to be honest, right now I feel wonderful,” the Hamburg native noted on the eve of Roland Garros. Ten days later, the German stands before the opportunity of a lifetime.
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