Alexander Zverev faced harsh criticism at the French Open, with former coach of Serena Williams, Rennae Stubbs, calling out the world No. 3 for his controversial behavior following a recent match. The German star had suffered a loss to Lorenzo Musetti at the Italian Open earlier this month, and afterward voiced multiple grievances — both about his opponent and the tournament equipment.
Zverev expressed frustration with Musetti’s playing style and slammed the tennis balls used in Rome, calling them “very slow” and “very heavy.” He said, “I think he [Musetti] always plays like this on clay — heavily reliant on defense and waiting for opponents to make mistakes. It was hard for me to hit winners. The conditions were slow and heavy. The balls got really big.”
After falling to Musetti 7-6(1), 6-4 in the quarter-finals, Zverev even described the tennis balls as “a joke” — remarks that Stubbs didn’t let slide.
Speaking on her podcast, the Australian former pro didn’t hold back: “No man, your forehand — you push the ball more than Musetti does with that shot. And you hate facing him because he slices to your forehand, and you’re like 17 feet tall with the worst grip. You can’t get under the ball and you back off instead of going for it.”
Stubbs continued, “That’s why you’re not going to be a great champion. You’re a great player, sure, but you won’t win a Grand Slam if you keep whining about the balls. When was the last time Nadal, Federer, or Djokovic complained about the balls? Exactly.”
Her blistering critique came just ahead of Zverev’s French Open opener against American Learner Tien — the same player who upset him earlier this year at the Mexican Open.
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