Alexander Zverev became the target of social media scrutiny after criticizing the Shanghai Masters organizers. He claimed that the slow court conditions were designed to favor the top two men’s tennis players, Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner.
The German, who recently lost in the third round to World No. 54 Arthur Rinderknech, suggested tournaments were tweaking surfaces to benefit the top players, sparking a flood of reactions from fans who pointed out his inconsistent 2025 season.
Why Alexander Zverev Thinks Shanghai’s Courts Favor Top Players Like Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner?
Zverev’s comments came after his second-round victory over France’s Valentin Royer in Beijing, where he voiced frustration over what he perceived as overly slow courts. He suggested that tournaments intentionally adjust surfaces to give players like Alcaraz and Sinner an advantage, claiming that modern courts no longer force players to adapt their game style across different surfaces as they once did.
His remarks echoed Roger Federer’s last month during the Laver Cup, when the Swiss, on Andy Roddick’s podcast Served, noted that event directors sometimes modify court speeds to favor top players, making it harder for underdogs to capitalize on faster conditions.
“I hate when [court speeds are] the same,” Zverev said. “I know that tournament directors are going in that direction because obviously they want Jannik and Carlos to do well every tournament. We always had different surfaces. You couldn’t play the same tennis the same way on a grass court, hard court, and a clay court. Nowadays, you can play almost the same way on every surface.”
While his comments hinted at strategic favoritism, fans quickly turned the conversation toward Zverev’s performance. After his loss to Rinderknech, a fan highlighted a striking statistic on X, showing that Zverev had lost to 15 players outside of Alcaraz and Sinner in 2025, including four players he had been defeated by twice: Rinderknech, Daniil Medvedev, Taylor Fritz, and Francisco Cerundolo.
Other notable names on the list included Novak Djokovic, Felix Auger-Aliassime, Lorenzo Musetti, Alex de Minaur, Matteo Berrettini, Karen Khachanov, Tallon Griekspoor, Arthur Fils, Francisco Comesana, Alexandre Müller, and Learner Tien.
Fans on X didn’t hold back in their reactions. “Can’t believe ALL of these players are a part of the court speed conspiracy,” one wrote sarcastically.
While another fan added, “Wow, so many courts have been changed to make it easier for them to win.”
Some poked fun at Zverev’s excuses, with one fan noting, “Zverev opened a Pandora’s box of humiliation! I believe it’s Federer who alluded to court prep favoring certain types of players, but Zverev does NOT have the leeway that Roger has. Someone should tell Zverev it’s best to stay quiet & be thought a fool than to open your mouth & prove it!”
“Zverev was crying about the court speed but he can’t even beat world no 54 Rinderknech,” another user wrote.
Others highlighted the absurdity of blaming court conditions for repeated losses: “Its those courts Fritzy has beaten him on fairly fast grass and slow gritty hard court .”
READ MORE: Jannik Sinner Hits Back at Alexander Zverev’s Claim About Surfaces Benefiting Italian and Carlos Alcaraz
Additional commentary included, “Zverev’s excuse sounds more foolish at every loss,” and “Zverev should focus on his performances rather than thinking about court conditions and other nonsense things.”
Zverev’s doubles performance didn’t help his case. He and his partner Marcelo Melo lost in three sets to Yunchaokete Bu and Ray Ho in the first round.
