Zverev: Tennis star is annoyed by Becker and Rittner

First the quarterfinal exit at Roland Garros, now the anger at the TV experts: After arriving at the grass-court tournament in Stuttgart, Alexander Zverev let his frustration run wild. "When things are going well for me, I always do everything right; when things are going badly for me, everyone is always very, very clever. Unfortunately, Boris is one of them," the Hamburg tennis pro said about Eurosport's Becker (57).

The three-time Wimbledon champion had expressed strong opinions about Zverev on the French Open broadcaster, as well as in the podcast with Andrea Petković. Zverev didn't like that – nor did he like the comments of former national coach Barbara Rittner, "who, for whatever reason, has such strong opinions about my career," Zverev said, adding: "First of all, I don't take her opinion seriously, and secondly, she has the wrong opinion in my eyes."

Becker had advised Zverev to make a change in his environment to fulfill his dream of winning his first Grand Slam title. "At some point, you need new sounds and a new environment. It's the same in football; coaches don't usually stay with one club for ten years." Rittner (52) responded to Zverev's explanation that his loss to Novak Djokovic had something to do with the drop in temperature that evening in Paris: "He can't tell me that."

Zverev is expected to start the grass-court season in Stuttgart on Thursday after a first-round bye. He could face Becker on Tuesday. Zverev wouldn't shy away from a discussion. "I think in every relationship, whether it's with a partner or with someone else, you have points of contention. That's perhaps especially true for us," said the 28-year-old. But: "I still have enormous respect for him. He's an absolute legend, not just in sports, but in Germany in general and worldwide."

Therefore, he will "always listen" to what Becker has to say. "But I don't always have to agree with it," Zverev said. The world number three has been coached by his father, Alexander Sr., for years, and his brother Mischa manages his career.

RND/SID