Munich – Olympic tennis champion Alexander Zverev has criticised the Wimbledon exclusion of Russian and Belarusian tennis pros.
“The decision shows that the different tennis communities are not standing together. We play all year on the men’s tour with one rule. Namely, Russian tennis players are not allowed to play under the Russian flag. Wimbledon does what they want,” the 25-year-old said before the clay court tournament in Munich.
Understanding for out in team competitions
At the same time, Zverev supported the decision of the world governing body ITF to exclude Russia and Belarus from team competitions like the Davis Cup. “I think that’s totally correct. Because these are really sanctions against Russia,” Zverev explained.
In response to the Russian war of aggression in Ukraine, Wimbledon organisers had announced on Wednesday that professionals from Russia and Belarus would not be allowed to play in the grass-court classic from 27 June to 10 July. Among those affected are world number two Daniil Medvedev of Russia, Zverev’s buddy Andrey Rublyov and world number four Aryna Sabalenka of Belarus.
Ranking makes “no sense
Germany’s best tennis pro also pointed out the consequences of the Wimbledon decision in this context. “At some point, even the tennis rankings don’t make sense. If you are not allowed to play a Grand Slam as a top player, it makes no sense to have the ranking,” Zverev said.
Zverev himself was born in Hamburg and has Russian parents. His brother Mischa, who had also criticised the decision, is from Moscow. As his brother’s manager, Mischa also works with the Ukrainian Sergei Bubka junior.
