German veteran Philipp Kohlschreiber believes that compatriot Alexander Zverev has the ability to fill the void once the big four retire from the sport.
At 56th in the world, Zverev is currently the only player aged under 18 inside the top 100. Earlier this month the German stunned world No.15 Gilles Simon to reach the quarterfinals at the ABN Amro Open in Rotterdam. Then earlier this week he took a set off second seed Thomas Berdych at the Open 13 in France before losing 7-5 in the decider. Zverev’s recent run is encouraging for the 18-year-old as Kohlschreiber explained that now is the best time for the teenager to play on the tour.
“I think Zverev comes at a great time in men’s tennis,” Kohlschreiber said during an interview with The National.
“The top four guys are not getting any younger.
“Novak, Roger and maybe Murray they are still dominating the tennis, but in a few years from now, there will be nobody that strong, at least not as strong as these guys. At this moment, I don’t see anyone”.
The former Australian Open boys’ champion first rose to prominence on the ATP Tour at the 2014 German International Open. Playing in his first ATP main draw, Zverev delighted his home crowd by reaching the semifinals of the category 500 event before losing to David Ferrer. Since his impressive 2014 run, Zverev has steadily risen up the rankings as he targets his first ATP Tour Final. Currently the 18-year-old has two singles titles, both of which are from the Challenger Circuit (Heilbronn 2014 and Braunschweig 2015).
The game of Zverev is one that Kohlschreiber is very familiar with. The two men have played each other on the tour twice last year with the world No.29 defeating his younger rival on both occasions. Speaking about Zverev, Kohlschreiber believes that he will have a bright future as long as he stays injury-free.
“Zverev is a very young talented guy, he loves tennis and he is a great character,” The former world No.16 said.
“We practise quite a lot together. You know at this age, he is 18, he is hitting with great force already.
“So I think he has a very good future ahead of him.
“I hope he stays healthy with the same attitude on the court and I think then he will have a great future.”
Kohlschreiber isn’t the first player to complement Zverev. Last year at the Stockholm Open former Wimbledon finalist Berdych also said the German has ‘a bright future‘ ahead of him.
The next tournament for Zverev will be in two weeks time at the Indian Wells Masters where he will play in the qualifying draw. Meanwhile, Kohlschreiber will be in action this week at the Dubai Tennis Championships. He is seeded eighth in the tournament and could play French Open champion Stan Wawrinka in the quarterfinals.
