When Alexander Zverev seriously injured his ankle during the 2022 French Open semifinal against Rafael Nadal, no one knew if he would return to compete at the highest level. The German champion had to use all his patience and mental strength to recover from that injury, which could have jeopardized the rest of his career.
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According to some insiders, Sascha would have won that match against Rafa on the iconic Philippe Chatrier if he hadn't been injured and would have been favored against Casper Ruud in the final. We will never have an answer to this, but what is certain is that the champion from Hamburg is still fighting to win his first Grand Slam title.
After being defeated by Dominic Thiem in the last act of the 2020 US Open, the current world number 2 has played two more Grand Slam finals at the 2024 French Open and the 2025 Australian Open respectively losing to Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner, respectively.
Clement has a different opinion
Several experts are wondering if the 2022 edition of Roland Garros is not destined to remain the biggest regret in Sascha's career.
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Speaking on Eurosport, former French ace Arnaud Clement admitted that he has a very clear idea about it: "A lot of people say that Zverev would have won that Roland Garros if he hadn't been injured against Rafa Nadal in the semifinals, but I think he would have lost anyway. It is true that he was dominating that match before he got hurt, but he was still behind a set despite playing better than Rafa. The second set was very balanced and we know how strong the Spaniard was on that court. I doubt that Sascha would have accomplished the feat that day."
Despite reaching the final at Melbourne Park last Sunday, the German player came out very heartbroken from the challenge with Sinner.
The world number 1 outclassed him from all points of view and did not give him a single break point in the entire match.
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A hard blow that will not be easy to forget for Alexander.
