Tennis – Laver Cup not a show tournament for Zverev – Sport

Berlin (dpa) – For tennis pro Alexander Zverev, the Laver Cup in Berlin is more than just a show event. “Everyone here is very motivated to win. If it wasn’t a serious tournament, we wouldn’t train two or three hours a day and prepare the way we do. The attraction is that the best players in the world are all there and on one team. “You don’t want to disappoint them,” said Zverev in Berlin.

The world number two is part of Team Europe in this weekend’s team competition. The format of the event, co-initiated by Roger Federer, is similar to that of the Ryder Cup in golf: At the Laver Cup, Team Europe meets Team World. At the Ryder Cup, the best European golfers compete against the best players from the USA.

Zverev: You don’t need a leader here

After the cancellation of the Italian world number one Jannik Sinner, Zverev is in the spotlight in front of the home crowd, also because of his position in the rankings. However, the Hamburg native does not see himself as the leader of his team. “Here you don’t need anyone who gets loud in the locker room and acts like a leader,” said the German, describing the feeling at the Laver Cup as incredible.

“Normally you sit in the locker room and want to beat every opponent and suddenly they are your teammates.” That is something special. “This is the only tournament in the world where you have five top ten players as your teammates.”

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