Germany's Disheartened Zverev Poses a Threat to Spain

Alexander Zverev did not hide his feelings. He does not like the Davis Cup. Or rather, he does not like this version of the Davis Cup.

"The real Davis Cup is about the atmosphere. Playing against Italy in Italy would be a completely different atmosphere than playing against Italy in Spain. I played against Nadal in a bullring, and that, for me, is the real Davis Cup. I don't think this Davis Cup is the real Davis Cup. It's an exhibition tournament they call the Davis Cup," the German said a few days ago.

This is not new; Zverev has rejected this new format since its introduction in 2019 and has only played the preliminary rounds since then to prevent Germany from dropping in the world tennis rankings.

And he has committed this time because he is aware that this generation of players does not have many more chances to lift the Davis Cup, a title they have not won since 1993, with Michael Stich as the leader.

"I am going to play because my teammates have asked me to, as they feel they are getting older. We only have a couple of years left to do it with this lineup. Struff doesn't have many more opportunities. The doubles players don't have many opportunities. I am going to play for that reason alone. For me, this has nothing to do with the Davis Cup. The only reason I am here is for this team. I keep saying, and will continue to say, that I prefer the old Davis Cup format," emphasized the world's third-best player.

And now they are one step away from the final. The Germans agonizingly defeated Argentina in the quarter-finals, in a tie decided in the doubles, in a third-set tiebreak that went to 12-10, where Kevin Krawietz and Tim Puetz saved three match points before sealing the victory and securing the Germans' first semi-final appearance since 1995, with Boris Becker in the team.

Spain, having achieved the feat against the Czech Republic, now faces an even greater challenge. This Saturday (12:00 Spanish time), the Spanish team will aim for their first final since 2019 and the first away from home since losing to the Czechs in 2012.

Logic dictates that David Ferrer will trust the same lineup that defeated the Czechs this Friday. Pablo Carreño will open the tie against Jan-Lennard Struff, while the second match will feature the number ones, Jaume Munar against Zverev, and if necessary, Marcel Granollers and Pedro Martínez will close the doubles against Krawietz and Puetz, the sixth-best pair in the world in this specialty.

Struff, 35, is also a server like Mensik, but somewhat less powerful, much more inconsistent, and often comes to the net. On these courts

Carreño has won three of the four matches they have played, including one under these same conditions, indoor hard court, but that was five years ago. Zverev defeated Munar in their most recent encounter, at the Paris 2024 Olympics, while he lost to the Spaniard in the distant Marrakech 2019, on clay.

As for Granollers, he has an impeccable record against Krawietz and Puetz when partnering with Horacio Zeballos. He has defeated the Germans on four occasions, twice at Wimbledon (2023 and 2024), in the final of the Madrid Masters 1000 this year, and in the recent ATP Finals in Turin.