Alexander Zverev said a “big result” at Wimbledon “is definitely possible this year” after he breezed into the third round with a dominant win over Valentin Royer.
After losing his first three major finals, Zverev ended his elusive wait for a maiden Grand Slam title last month when he beat Flavio Cobolli to win the French Open.
The triumph has given the German second seed a boost coming into Wimbledon, where he has never gone beyond the fourth round.
“It builds confidence when you win in straight sets, especially at Wimbledon where I am still waiting for a big result,” said Zverev after his 6-1 6-3 7-6 (7-3) victory.
“If I continue playing like this, I think it is definitely possible this year.”
After Royer, ranked 75th, held serve in the opening game, Zverev won the next nine and did not offer up a break point until he was 4-3 up in the third and wobbled with a double fault.
Frenchman Royer grabbed that opportunity and forced a tie-break, but Zverev recovered to wrap up the victory in just over two hours and set up a third-round encounter with American Marcos Giron.
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While Zverev says his mindset is “very different” as he competes as a reigning Slam champion, the 29-year-old insists he will not be getting ahead of himself.
“I love the saying ‘in tennis you need to have a short-term memory, good or bad’,” Zverev added.
“The next tournament is always round the corner. I won the French Open, which I’ve been waiting for such a long time and was such a big relief, but two weeks later we’re here at Wimbledon.
“It’s such a short turnaround. You have to remember that you can and have done it, but have to take every match at 100%.”
Earlier on Thursday, Taylor Fritz – who defeated Zverev in the final of the Halle Open last month – returned in his tailored pre-match suit before defeating fellow American Patrick Kypson 6-2 6-2 7-5.
Australian fifth seed Alex de Minaur also sailed through with a commanding 6-3 6-2 6-2 victory over French veteran Adrian Mannarino.
(BBC)
