German tennis player Alexander Zverev will miss the upcoming US Open after failing to recover in time from an ankle injury.
The injury in question occurred during the semi-finals of the French Open when Zverev fell awkwardly during his match against Rafael Nadal.
The 25-year-old left the court in a wheelchair before returning on crutches, informing the umpire he could no longer continue. It had been a pulsating semi-final up until that point with the score at 7-6 (8) 6-6 in Nadal’s favour, before Zverev withdrew.
It was later revealed that he had torn multiple ligaments his ankle and he hasn’t played since.
US OPEN STATEMENT ON ZVEREV
2020 US Open finalist Alexander Zverev will miss the 2022 US Open. The 25-year-old German officially withdrew from the event on Monday as a result of a continuing ankle injury.
Zverev has been sidelined since June after he suffered the injury against Rafael Nadal in the semifinals at Roland Garros. Ahead of the second-set tiebreak, Zverev rolled his right ankle while chasing a ball behind the baseline, and was forced to leave the court in a wheelchair. He later underwent surgery for three torn lateral ligaments in the affected ankle.
Zverev had played 27 consecutive Grand Slam main draws since his 2015 debut before this injury also forced him out of Wimbledon. He had played seven straight US Open main draws, and in addition to finishing as runner-up to Dominic Thiem in 2020, reached the semifinals last year.
American Stefan Kozlov moves into the main draw to replace Zverev. The 24-year-old Floridian will make his US Open main draw debut after falling in qualifying on six previous occasions.
