Toni Nadal believes Alexander Zverev’s mentality has been the biggest hurdle in his path to win a major so far in his career.
The legendary highlighted the key moment in Zverev’s loss to Carlos Alcaraz in the 2024 Roland Garros championship match.
Zverev faced a 6-3, 2-6, 5-7, 6-1, 6-2 defeat against Alcaraz in the French Open final last week as he completed his second 5-set loss at a major final.
The 27-year-old overturned a 2-5 deficit in the third set to take the frame 7-5 and turn the tide in his favor but couldn’t capitalize on the lead from 2 sets to one up.
Zverev won just three more games as Alcaraz made some finest display of skill and mental strength to clinch his third major title. The World No. 4 converted just one of the nine break point opportunities during the fourth and fifth frames.
That was Zverev’s second appearance in a major final after he lost to Dominic Thiem in the 2020 US Open title match as he blew a 2-0 sets lead by losing the remaining three sets. Against the Austrian, Zverev failed to serve out at the championship game when 5-3 in the final set as he gave away the match in the deciding tiebreak.
The German is recognized as one of the best players not to win a major crown, considering he is a 2-time ATP Finals champion, a 6-time Masters 1000 champion and the reigning Olympic champion.
In his column for El Pais, Toni Nadal reflected on the Roland Garros final as he pointed out how Zverev lost control of the match despite having opportunities to win it.
“At the second point of the first game in the fourth set, after the big comeback of the previous set and having taken a 0–15 lead, Alexander made a trivial error and turned angrily towards his box to complain,” Nadal wrote.
“Fifteen minutes later, in the blink of an eye, the Spaniard was already leading 4–0 in this important set.
“If Zverev has failed to win a Grand Slam tournament so far, it is surely because he has not been able to control these situations like at the start of the fourth set against Alcaraz.
“Carlos faced him in the fourth set after a painful comeback without losing his composure, his conviction and his faith in victory. Something that is only within the reach of great champions. My most sincere congratulations.”