It’s time for a little quiz.
Who has won the most matches on the ATP Tour this year?
Jannik Sinner ? Carlos Alcaraz ? Novak Djokovic ? Daniil Medvedev ?
No, it turns out it’s Alexander Zverev, who will be facing a well-known opponent in the second round of the National Bank Open presented by Rogers: Australian Jordan Thompson.
Zverev has won 44 ATP matches this season, not including his three victories at the Paris Olympics last week.
Although he has yet to secure his first Grand Slam title – falling in five sets to Alcaraz in the French Open final – those victories show just how consistent the German has been in 2024.
His next duel against Thompson will not be easy, however.
Let’s take a closer look at this clash.
Happy to be back
Last year, a torn ankle ligament suffered at Roland Garros in 2022 prevented the German from participating in the Montreal tournament. He is therefore back in the metropolis for the first time since 2019.
Two years earlier, Zverev had been crowned champion.
He had only lost one set – to Richard Gasquet in the first round. In fact, Zverev spectacularly erased a match point, beating Gasquet in a 49-shot rally.
In the final, he defeated another one-handed backhand magician, Roger Federer.
“It was a long time ago, for sure, but those memories are still there and they make you feel comfortable on Centre Court,” Zverev told the ATP. “I have a lot of work to do. I have a lot of tough matches to play.
“I’m going to do everything I can to play great tennis.”
Thompson leads their face-to-face
Speaking of tough matches, the duel between Zverev and Thompson in Los Cabos in February falls into that category.
In the semifinals, Thompson battled Zverev for 3 hours and 40 minutes. And as the length of the game indicates, the German did not give up easily, falling on the seventh match point.
Several months earlier, “Thommo”, as he is nicknamed, had beaten the German in two rounds in Tokyo.
Of Thompson’s four wins over top-10 players, half have come against Zverev.
Thompson will never forget Los Cabos.
Besides that marathon match against Zverev, he had to come back from 0-6, 0-3 down before beating Alex Michelsen in the quarter-finals, then played three matches on the final day (two in doubles) in the space of about six hours.
Did we mention this was his first ATP title?
Thompson is ranked 30th in the world – which is his age – for the first time in his career, and reached the second round in Montreal after beating Jack Draper, ranked 28th in the world.
Turnaround fast for Zverev
Like Medvedev, Zverev had to turn around quickly to compete in the Montreal tournament after his time in Paris did not go as he had hoped.
In fact, he was the reigning champion of the Games, was surprised by Lorenzo Musetti (who beat Félix Auger-Aliassime in the bronze medal match) in the third round.
Speaking to the media on Monday, Zverev said he wasn’t quite back to normal. He also said his knee, which he injured in a slip on the grass at Wimbledon, was doing much better.
Thompson, an excellent doubles player who teamed with Max Purcell to eliminate Auger-Aliassime and Alexis Galarneau on Tuesday, did not take part in the Olympic Games.
His compatriots Matt Ebden and John Peers won gold in Paris thanks to a victory in the final at the expense of Americans Austin Krajicek and Rajeev Ram.
