CHINA OPEN

October 3, 2026

Alexander Zverev

Press Conference

A. ZVEREV/Shang Juncheng

6-0, 6-3

THE MODERATOR: Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to the press conference of Sascha Zverev.

We'll do English questions first.

Q. Pretty comfortable one again for you out there. In terms of just your game, I know Jerry was dealing with stuff, not playing his best, not sure it would have made that much of a difference. How are you feeling out there with the conditions? Was it much different tonight?

ALEXANDER ZVEREV: Yeah, it was different 'cause I think the roof was closed. It really felt like an indoor. It was an indoor court. It was comfortable for me.

But yeah, I expected a difficult match because I knew he's very, very young, he's got a lot of talent, a lot of potential. I know he was struggling with injuries the last couple of years, but we know he's very dangerous.

In the beginning, yeah, I was expecting a difficult match. I was ready to go from the first moment. For a set and a half, kind of what I did. Then I lost a little bit of focus because the match wasn't really a match.

But I'm definitely happy with the level.

Q. You got Novak Djokovic next. What do you think about that matchup and what do you think about his record in Beijing?

ALEXANDER ZVEREV: Yeah, it's exciting for me, for sure. It's definitely a court that he absolutely loves and enjoys playing at. No question about it. He won, what, 31 matches here in a row.

Still I think best-of-three sets he's going to be one of the toughest challenges you can have in this sport on a hard court. No question about it. He's playing great.

I look forward to this challenge. Yeah, look forward to tomorrow.

Q. Today we know that Jannik Sinner will not play in Shanghai. That will increase a bit your chances to be No. 1 in the world. In this new phase of your career, how is for you living a goal that is getting closer and closer, but you still have to fight for it?

ALEXANDER ZVEREV: Yeah, I think it's no secret that it's a goal, for sure. Right now this second I'm thinking about Novak Djokovic tomorrow. I think, again, it's one of the toughest challenges we can have in the sport, to play him on a hard court.

Of course, I know what I'm playing for. I know I'm very, very motivated to play at the moment. But again, I have a tough challenge tomorrow, and that's my focus.

Q. Obviously we've talked about the quick turnaround and everything from Laver Cup. These two matches, do they help you refuel the tank a little bit in terms of being able to play well and have that confidence?

ALEXANDER ZVEREV: My tank is fine. I'm not worried about that. I said it before: I think this part of the season you're tired because you're mentally tired. When you have something to play for, I will feel fine.

I know that I'm capable of recovering. I know that I'm capable of playing good tennis. I have to trust my ability to do that.

Q. I think it's safe to say that this year has been the best season of your career. Do you feel anything you've been doing differently compared to the past?

ALEXANDER ZVEREV: I think I redefined my tennis a little bit at the end of last year. I've spoken about it openly. I sat down with my team and we said we're going to play different tennis this year. It's been working out well. In the beginning of the year we lost some matches that we shouldn't have lost. We knew it's the price we had to play.

I'm happy that we did this step.

Q. Your game seemed much more relaxed since you have the confidence. It feels like winning brings you confidence. It feels like yesterday that 10 years ago you came on tour, still a teenager playing Roger Federer for the first time. Now a decade later in the era of what's called the Alcaraz-Sinner era, you have two Grand Slams. How do you think tennis changed between now and then? Has it gotten better or worse?

ALEXANDER ZVEREV: Worse definitely not. I feel like everything evolves. As humans we evolve. Sports evolve. Technology evolves. I think everything evolves.

The technology in tennis is very important. I think the racquet, strings, everything that comes with it, makes the game faster, makes the game more powerful. I think nowadays the game is more powerful. It is much, much quicker.

I think the court surfaces have changed. The balls have changed. It's a different kind of tennis that you play nowadays. I've always said that.

10 years ago when I came on tour, tennis was a lot more tactical. You had to think how to play tennis. Now I feel like it's a lot to do with power. Whoever hits the better forehand, the better backhand is going to win most of the matches.

I feel like that's something that's evolved.