Alexander Zverev played a dangerous game on Friday, when he came back from the brink of defeat in the fourth set — and saved one match point at 4-5 in the decider — against Damir Dzumhur at Roland Garros for the 150th match win of his career (150-78).
Having led by a set and 3-1, the second-seeded German found himself staring down the barrel with Dzumhur serving for the match at 6-5 in the fourth set and later on serve at 4-5, 30/40 in the fifth set. But Dzumhur, the No. 26 seed from Bosnia and Herzegovina, blinked and Zverev fought back to complete a 6-2, 3-6, 4-6, 7-6(3), 7-5 win in just under four hours on Court Philippe-Chatrier.
“It was a great win, but also being out there was very special,” said Zverev. “It was a very tight match. It's normal there were a lot of nerves involved. In that moment [at match point down], it's all about finding a way. Even if you're not playing your best, it's all about finding a way to win and finding the right solution to the right moment.
“I think it was important to see for myself that I can win back-to-back five-set matches and both very difficult physical matches,” said Zverev. “I was feeling fine physically, so for me that gives me a lot of confidence going deep into the fifth set, and long matches on this kind of surface… [It] gives me a lot of confidence.”
Zverev, the winner of 19 of his past 21 clay-court matches, also came through a tense five-set victory over Serbia’s Dusan Lajovic in the Roland Garros second round. He will now recharge and prepare to face French No. 15 seed Lucas Pouille or Karen Khachanov of Russia in the fourth round, which equals his best Grand Slam championship performance (2017 Wimbledon).
Should Zverev’s older brother, Mischa Zverev, beat No. 6 seed Kevin Anderson of South Africa on Saturday, they would become the third pair of brothers to reach the fourth round at the same major championship in the Open Era (since April 1968) after Sandy Mayer and Gene Mayer at 1979 Wimbledon and Emilio Sanchez and Javier Sanchez at the 1991 US Open.
The 21-year-old Zverev captured ATP World Tour titles at the BMW Open by FWU (d. Kohlschreiber) and the Mutua Madrid Open (d. Thiem), in addition to a runner-up finish at the Internazionali BNL d’Italia in Rome (l. to Nadal). He has a 33-8 record on the season and leads the ATP Race To London, for one of eight spots at the Nitto ATP Finals in November, at The O2 in London.
So solid on serve was Zverev that through his first five service games, he’d only lost four points and as he took a 3-1 lead in the second set, with 44 minutes on the match clock, Dzumhur had barely challenged the smooth, powerful game of the German. Yet, in a 19-minute passage of play, Zverev lost focus on serve and Dzumhur found his rhythm to win five straight games.
Dzumhur continued to play closer to the baseline and bided his time. He regrouped after Zverev recovered from 0/40 at 3-3, by winning eight of the next nine points for a 5-4 advantage. He clinched the set, having saved two break points.
The 26-year-old took a 4-2 lead in the fourth set, and the prospect of a big upset was on the cards. Zverev kept fighting, tightened up his ball-striking and moved into the net to recover to 5-5. But at 5-6, the pressure began to tell. Zverev double-faulted on Dzumhur’s second break point and as the Bosnian went to his courtside chair, he contemplated serving for the biggest win of his career.
"Actually didn't feel that nervous," said Dzumhur. "I was just, in the second part of the fourth set, physically wearing down a little bit. It's also connected with mental strength, and I think I was not mentally ready to win that match in fourth set. I was rushing a little bit in that service game. He was playing very smart in that moment. He let me make mistakes."
Dzumhur blinked, dropping his serve to love and never recovered in the tie-break, which saw Zverev win five of the first six points. Zverev carried the momentum into the decider, breaking in the first game, and after a brief rally from Dzumhur, the 21-year-old German moved into a 4-2 lead.
The drama hadn't ended. Dzumhur dug deep and came within one point of winning four straight games. Zverev hung tough, in three lengthy games, and broke for a 6-5 lead prior to holding to 30 for a memorable win.
“(Damir's) a tough opponent no matter where you play him, and especially on this surface and especially over long matches because he's so fit," said Zverev. "I was not surprised. It's never easy. It's a Grand Slam. People play their best tennis at Grand Slams, especially on big courts against higher-ranked opponents.”