Andrew L. John

The Desert Sun

Alexander Zverev stood in the middle of a crowded Stadium 1 at the Indian Wells Tennis Garden in shock and disgust, the blond shag atop his head gently shaking in frustration. His fists clenched as he sensed the biggest moment of his young life start to slip away.

This was supposed to be an emblematic moment. The 18-year-old German phenom, one step from becoming the youngest man to make the Indian Wells quarterfinals since Michael Chang and Andre Agassi in 1989, was one point from defeating fifth-ranked Rafael Nadal. The script was beginning to unfold as Zverev’s coming-out party – and it was coming at the expense of a 14-time Grand Slam champion in the latter stages of his career.

He had risen from No. 665 to the top 60 in less than two years, and already had some believing, with his massive 6-foot-6 frame and 136-mph serves, that he could help bridge the gap from the current generation to the next.

But it apparently wasn’t meant to happen that day.

Instead, the storyline shifted as Zverev blew his shot to put Nadal away when he knocked a straightforward forehand volley into the net on match point. The stadium crowd, loyal to Nadal all these years, roared with excitement. It was the only opening Nadal needed.

For his part, Zverev came emotionally unraveled. Lost in the fervor of the game, his glaring inexperience surfaced. He gave up 15 of the last 16 points, between scowls, expletives and more forehands into the net, and lost five consecutive games to complete the 6-7 (8), 6-0, 7-5 collapse.

“I missed probably the easiest shot I had all match,” said Zverev, who goes by the name Sascha. “Obviously, Rafa played unbelievable after that.”

The teenager sulked when he met with reporters afterward, cognizant of the opportunity he had squandered, which was the third time in three weeks he failed to put a top 10 player away. He lost to Tomas Berdych – 7-5 in the third set in Marseille and 6-4 in the fifth in Germany.

In that moment, he evidently wasn’t quite ready to slay a giant. But at this year’s BNP Paribas Open, it appears he’ll once again have his chance.

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Now ranked 22nd in the world by the Association of Tennis Professionals, Zverev could see Novak Djokovic or Juan Martin del Potro as early as his third match. He could then see Nadal or Roger Federer a round later in what some players have described as the toughest section of a draw they’ve ever seen. To even get to one of those matchups, Zverev would likely have to beat rising star Nick Kyrgios, a fiery young Australian who is 16th in the world.

Zverev, though, is no longer expected to shrink under the pressure. He had 19 wins against top 30 players in 2016, and was one of two players, along with No. 4 Milos Raonic, to beat Federer and Stan Wawrinka, with both wins coming after his undoing against Nadal. He then beat Federer again earlier this year.

And it all comes back to that afternoon match against Nadal at Indian Wells.

“I don’t think I would have beaten Federer and Wawrinka and the other top 10 matches that I won last year without playing that great match against Rafa,” Zverev said. “That was the first time I took one of the top four guys the distance, and really felt like I could’ve won that match.”

Expectations

Fans will remember that match for Zverev’s collapse, or Nadal’s brilliance. Few will fully understand what it did for the kid who is now ignoring the sometimes unrealistic expectations of rabid German tennis fans. Zverev knows about them all too well.

He grew up watching Boris Becker, Michael Stich and Tommy Haas. He also took note of the numberless players who tried reaching their level, yet failed. It’s now been two decades since a German man won a Grand Slam, dating back to Becker’s 1996 Australian Open title, and Germans have Zverev pegged as someone who can end the streak.

“He’s an amazing, talented player,” Nadal said. “A future, probably, No. 1 of the world.”

While Zverev’s game stirs excitement in his country, he’s made a point of blocking it out. Instead of listening to fanatical opinions about who he is, or what he should accomplish, Zverev maintains a relatively small circle of people he trusts, including his parents, who’ll keep him grounded.

“There’s a lot of people who have an opinion,” Zverev said. “There’s really like three or four people who I listen to, and that’s my team.”

Not that he'd put that pressure on himself anyway. He’s always been too preoccupied with being the best player in his own family. Right now, he insists, that’s his brother, Mischa, who’s currently ranked 33rd in the world.

In Hamburg, the brothers learned the sport at a young age, with a father, Alexander Sr., who played for the Soviet Union, and a mother Irena, a tennis instructor. Though 10 years apart in age, Sascha was so advanced at a young age that he could practice with Mischa. They’d watch tapes of the best players in the world, then mimic their styles in practice sessions.

When Mischa began playing junior tennis, the family traveled with him and did so for the early part of his pro career. The night before Mischa’s first round match at the 2007 Australian Open, the two brothers practiced for an hour and a half together. Even with the vast age difference and experience level, Sascha would get frustrated when he couldn’t get the ball past his brother at the net.

“He was 9 at the time,” Mischa Zverev said, “and very, very competitive even then.”

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The two competed in just about everything, whether it was on the court, in the gym, playing PlayStation, or even eating different foods. They’d push each other during practice sessions, with Mischa trying not to be upstaged by his younger brother, and visa versa.

That competition helped ignite Sascha’s competitive fire, and helped his game evolve beyond most of the kids he played against in his early teens. By 14, in 2011, he had made his professional debut, and by 16 he was playing on the ATP Tour. At 17 he advanced to the semifinals of the annual event in Hamburg, and last year got his first win against a top 10 player.

Then, after nearly defeating Nadal last March, he beat Federer and Wawrinka.

“The match against Nadal showed that he can not only compete with the top guys but also beat them,” Mischa Zverev said. “It didn't happen here in 2016, unfortunately, but it set him up for future wins later in the year. He got to experience what it means to be on court with one of the most physical players on tour and matching Nadal's intensity for three sets was definitely something that prepared him for the next encounters.”

The brothers now pair up for doubles, with Mischa’s net game a compliment to Sascha’s 136-mph serves. They also room with or next to each other on the road, and it has given Sascha a practice partner and someone he can trust who has been in his shoes.

It’s helped him rise into the top 25 while still a teenager, which is something that has only been done by a handful of players over the last 20 years.

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“He has some pretty impressive tools already,” said Haas, now the tournament director in Indian Wells. “He’s very talented, he’s gifted body-wise – he has the length of a 6-foot-5, 6-foot-6 guy – he has a long reach with his arms, beautiful, powerful groundstrokes, a great serve.

“He’s going to take a lot of people’s game out of their hands because he will just dominate, and he’s going to just keep getting better.”

The drive to be great

Zverev stepped onto the hardcourt at Rod Laver Arena earlier this year. Across the net was Nadal.

Again, Zverev took an early lead in what would become a grueling, five-set, four-hour match at the Australian Open. The German won the first set, then the third, only to lose the remaining two as Nadal reached another Grand Slam final.

Those agonizing matches keep driving him, Mischa says, and will keep Sascha on the practice courts and in the gym at his training grounds at Saddlebrook Resort near Tampa, Fla.

Haas watched both matches against Nadal, noting that the competition level was at its peak, and that Zverev may have won if his conditioning had been just a little better. Zverev responded to the loss with a title in Montpellier, France, his second before his 20th birthday.

Some will look back to his 2016 Indian Wells match against Nadal and look at what Zverev squandered. He and those who've followed his rise over the last year will look at what he gained from his experience.

“I believed that he would become a great tennis player,” Mischa Zverev said. “I always felt that way and I still do. Obviously, a lot of work has to be done, (but) I can see that he has the spirit and the will to do everything it takes to become great.”

Andrew John covers tennis for The Desert Sun and The USA TODAY Network. Find him on Twitter at @Andrew_L_John.