Losing to his rival, Zverev gave a unique excuse.

Zverev is the sole diabetic athlete who continues to excel at the elite level, having clinched a Grand Slam title.

Alexander Zverev's 10-match winning streak officially ended after his loss to Taylor Fritz in the semifinals of the 2026 Halle Open. However, what caught fans' attention was not just the result on court but also his alarming health revelation during the match.

On his home court in Halle, Zverev lost to Fritz 6-7, 6-4, 5-7 after over two hours of play. This result ended the impressive run of the Roland Garros champion, who had not known defeat since the Italian Open in May.

Speaking after the match, the world No. 3 said he had a serious problem with controlling his blood sugar levels. According to Zverev, the glucose monitor he had used for years malfunctioned just before the match, causing him to inject too much insulin.

"I had a very serious issue with my blood sugar. The monitoring device gave inaccurate readings, causing me to overdose on insulin before the match.", Zverev shared.

The 29-year-old said he had to consume a large amount of sugar throughout the match to avoid dangerous hypoglycemia. "In the first 45 minutes, I had to consume nearly 350 grams of sugar. That's like drinking more than 3 liters of cola during a match. Obviously, the body can't feel normal in such a situation.", he said.

Sascha revealed that this was the first time the blood sugar monitoring system had serious issues since he started using it in 2016. The incident also forced him to request a medical timeout so that the medical team could check and reattach the device in the locker room.

Although unable to reach the Halle Open final, Zverev is still considered one of the notable contenders for Wimbledon 2026. Carlos Alcaraz's withdrawal due to injury makes the German player the second seed at the grass-court Grand Slam.

However, Wimbledon has long been a major challenge for Zverev. His best performance at the All England Club is just three fourth-round appearances in 2017, 2021, and 2024. Notably, the German star has yet to win any ATP title on grass in his career, despite reaching finals in Halle and Stuttgart.