Alexander Zverev is out of the 2017 Us Open Tennis Championships at the end of, what some considered, a huge upset while others are looking at it as a possible interesting rivalry. The 20-year old Croatian Borna Coric (61 ATP) recovered from a one set deficit to stun the fourth seed Alexander Zverev.
Winning two titles earlier this summer, and delivering some outstanding tennis throughout the process, he seemed to be on the verge of a Grand Slam breakthrough at 2017 US Open in New York. A premature exit that leaves the bottom half of the draw without its highest ranked member, while at the same time bringing in even more uncertainty regarding that side of the board.
Zverev will end the season without a Grand Slam breakthrough
So far, the current season has had Alexander Zverev on an upper trend. Winning five ATP titles stands as an irrefutable proof but his progress didn't put him in a winning position in majors. Now that he is out of US Open, he will end the season having the best Grand Slam run at Wimbledon where he reached the fourth round before losing to Milos Raonic. Back in January, he made it to the third round in Melbourne and had a 2-1 lead over Nadal only to lose in five. The clay court season saw Zverev soaring to his first Masters 1000 title in Rome. The very next week he fell short in the inaugural round at Roland Garros. Now, he sees his bid ended in the second round.
Currently ranked sixth in the world, Zverev will see his ranking going up due to the lack of activity from Novak Djokovic, Wawrinka and Murray. It'll be interesting to watch how he will tackle the Asian leg.
Borna Coric deserves all the credits for his performance
Both aged 20, Coric and Zverev put in a solid tennis performance.
The opening set had Zverev as the leading character as looked solid from behind the baseline. On the other side, Coric was trying to settle in. As the inaugural act landed in Zverev's pocket by 6-3 and with the second set heading to a tie-break, Coric stepped in, apparently out of nowhere to clinch the set by 7-5. As a result of a tremendous defensive game and an increased level of aggressiveness, the Croatian started to dominate Zverev, especially in those grueling rallies.
Even so, Zvereve kept his cool for a while pushing the set into a tie-break where he totally lost control. With a 2-1 lead, Coric didn't show too many signs of weakness throughout the fourth set. Despite struggling on his serve, he was able to save several break points before entering into another tie-break. Once again, Coric was the better player as he won't on capping a huge victory.
