CHINA OPEN

October 1, 2026

Alexander Zverev

Press Conference

A. ZVEREV/C. Norrie

7-6, 6-4

THE MODERATOR: Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to the press conference of Alexander Zverev. We'll go straight to questions.

Q. Sascha, you said yesterday that obviously it's a very quick turnaround. What were the keys to getting yourself prepped and ready to be able to play this match at a level that you were pleased with?

ALEXANDER ZVEREV: Yeah, I mean, getting your sleep rhythm, I think that's number one thing.

Overall, as I said, I'm a bit surprised because I thought it's going to be worse. I'm actually quite happy with the level. I thought it was a high-level match from both of us. I thought Cam played extremely well, as well.

I really can't complain about how today went.

Q. There is an ongoing debate in the tennis world right now about getting rid of five sets at Grand Slams. Until the quarterfinals they want to do it, then onwards...

ALEXANDER ZVEREV: Who wants to do it? Who wants to do it?

Q. Maybe some directors. The new kids of this era, they don't have the attention span to watch a five-set match. Don't you think this takes away from the core of the sport?

ALEXANDER ZVEREV: I think winning a Grand Slam is one of the hardest things in sport because we play five sets, otherwise we could just play Masters events and add four more Masters to the year.

A Grand Slam is different because we play best-of-five. It's history. It's part of what we do, part of why we physically prepare.

Also I don't agree with the whole debate that attention span and all that because the Australian Open just had record numbers this year. The US Open just had record numbers this year. I kind of don't agree with it because I think the sport of tennis is growing.

I don't know a single player who would like to play best-of-three sets. Yes, maybe Novak wants to play best-of-three because of course he's getting a bit older now. I think if you would have asked him this 10 years ago or 15 years ago, for sure not.

It's history. It's the toughest thing to win in our sport because we play best-of-five sets. It's physically one of the most extreme things that you can go through.

And no, I don't support it, just to clarify (smiling).

Q. About formats, I'm wondering how much did you like this ATP 500 format? We talk very often about the moments in the two weeks of Masters 1000s, while in ATP 500 you don't have bye, you start with Norrie. We saw Auger-Aliassime playing Khachanov.

ALEXANDER ZVEREV: I love it. I think Masters 1000s events should be like that. That's what it used to be. Masters 1000 events, eight players had a bye, the rest didn't. You saw first-round matches which were unbelievable. The No. 16 in the world could play the No. 17 in the world. The No. 9 in the world could play the No. 18 in the world. I think that was unbelievable to see. Now you got to wait for third round for like a week for matches like that to happen.

I think the 500 format hasn't changed, which I really like. I think the format here is great. I have nothing bad to say about it.

Q. What part of your game play gave you the edge tonight?

ALEXANDER ZVEREV: I think the serving definitely helped, especially in the important moments. But I think overall I played well from the baseline. I didn't return as well as I would have liked, but again, I'm in China for two days.

I'll take today. Like, I am definitely not complaining about today.

But I think generally speaking, overall it was a good match. I think I was hitting my forehand well. I think I was hitting my serve well. My backhand was solid. I did what I needed to do.

Q. You mentioned being surprised at your level today. Is that because you were feeling physically any issues on the court?

ALEXANDER ZVEREV: No, no. If you come from a different continent with seven-hour time difference, I think you might not feel as well. That's more the reasoning. Also I came from an indoor tournament to an outdoor tournament.

Honestly, my body feels fine. I went to see my doctor again on Monday after Laver Cup. After I see him is always the best I feel. That's why he's a good doctor (smiling).

Q. How are you feeling going into your next match?

ALEXANDER ZVEREV: I feel good. Nothing to complain about.

Q. Sometimes top players play the most matches. Arguably you would be the most tired given the amount of mileage in your body. At the same time there's a rhythm that comes in playing a non-stop schedule. Do you feel like that? It's not that you're on autopilot...

ALEXANDER ZVEREV: Again, we're in China, so we're in a different continent. Most of us are Europeans, American, North American, South American players. The end of the year to do this trip is very, very difficult. I think the players that play well here most of the time, they have something to play for, they have some sort of motivation to play well.

I think tiredness, the first thing about tiredness, it comes from the mind, it comes from your head. There were seasons where I arrived in China and I was tired, I didn't really feel that motivation anymore because I was, let's say, 3 or 4 in the race, I was already in Turin. Kind of was not fighting for anything. I didn't have things to play for.

I really feel motivated. I really have goals. I really have motivations that keep me going and keep me fresh in my head.

Q. Next round you are going to play against a Chinese player, Jerry Shang. Do you have any thoughts on that?

ALEXANDER ZVEREV: No. I look forward to it. It's very rare to play a Chinese player in China. I think it's great for the fans, great for tennis. I think Chinese tennis has grown so much over the last couple of years. I look forward to it.

Thank you.