Zverev explains why he performs poorly on grass courts

Despite having a good serve, Alexander Zverev has struggled to achieve significant success on grass, posting only modest accomplishments.

After winning his first Grand Slam title in his career at Roland Garros 2026, Alexander Zverev is shifting his focus to the grass-court season, aiming to conquer the missing milestone in his collection of achievements: claiming his first ATP title on grass.

The victory in Paris not only relieved the German player of years of pressure in Grand Slam tournaments but also gave him great confidence heading into the next phase of competition. However, grass remains a particular challenge for Zverev, despite being regarded as one of the world's top players over the past several seasons.

Throughout his career, Zverev has reached three ATP finals on grass: twice at the Halle Open and once at the Stuttgart Open, but he has yet to secure a title. This surface is the only one on which the 1997-born player has never won an ATP-level tournament.

Wimbledon has also never been a stage of great success for Zverev. His best result at the grass-court Grand Slam is reaching the fourth round three times. Compared to his performances at the Australian Open, Roland Garros, or US Open, this outcome remains rather modest.

Speaking to the German media ahead of the grass-court season, Zverev believes many people still have an inaccurate view of the characteristics of this surface.

According to the 2026 Roland Garros champion, the key to success on grass lies not in an attacking style of play, but in the ability to move and maintain balance on the slippery surface—something that poses a major challenge for a player with a height of nearly 2 meters and a weight of about 95 kilograms like him.

"Surface speed has never been an issue for me. I have won titles on very fast courts like Paris-Bercy, Cincinnati, and the Olympics. The hardest part on grass is movement. That's what I need to improve if I want to succeed.", Sascha admitted.

Next week, Alexander Zverev will enter the Halle Open with the aim of improving his grass-court results and breaking the final limit that remains in his career.