"He wanted it so badly that it was his own undoing" - Mischa Zverev on Alexander Zverev's pursuit of No. 1 ranking at Australian Open

In a recent interview with Tennis Magazin, Mischa Zverev spoke about his brother Alexander Zverev's disappointing run at the Australian Open. The German said the World No. 3 was overburdened by the pressure of possibly securing the No. 1 ranking in Melbourne.

Alexander Zverev had the chance to usurp Novak Djokovic as World No. 1 by winning the title in Melbourne, but he suffered a surprise defeat at the hands of Denis Shapovalov in the round of 16. The German won his first three matches in straight sets, but his game crumbled against Shapovalov and he fell to a 6-3, 7-6(3), 6-3 defeat.

In the interview, Mischa Zverev stressed that his brother was under "a lot of pressure" at the Australian Open. He revealed that the German was so eager to secure the No. 1 ranking that he proved to be his own worst enemy.

"He put a lot of pressure on himself. He wanted it so badly that it was his own undoing. He played outstandingly at the ATP Finals in Turin. In the final against Daniil Medvedev he was clearly superior," said Mischa Zverev.

"Sascha really wanted to play better and better. At some point he got into a stressful situation that he wanted to do everything even better... He never had that perfect feel for his entire game in Melbourne. He always had the feeling that something was missing. It was a vicious circle from which he could not free himself," concluded the World No. 371.

"Sascha wasn't in a good place, but he didn't give up until the end" - Mischa Zverev on Alexander Zverev's loss to Denis Shapovalov

Alexander Zverev at the 2022 Australian Open: Day 7

In the interview, Mischa Zverev also pointed out that his brother never stopped fighting in his last-16 match against Denis Shapovalov despite struggling to find his best tennis. According to the 34-year-old, even though Alexander Zverev appeared listless and lacked energy, he was still up for the battle.

"When you're uncomfortable and there's disruptive factors in the game, even if you're unlucky to have a ball go wide, you're in a position where you're struggling with yourself. From the outside, it looks like he doesn't want to. Inside, however, he is constantly fighting. Everyone reacts differently to stressful situations," said Mischa.

"Sascha wasn't in a good place in the round of 16 in terms of play. But he didn't give up until the end. I used to look like I didn't want to, but that's not true. I show my emotions differently. That's a misunderstanding one has. Just when someone looks listless doesn't mean they are listless," added the German.

After his disappointing Australian Open campaign, Alexander Zverev competed in Montpellier, where he reached the final. He was beaten in the title clash by Alexander Bublik.

Zverev will next feature at the Acupulco Open, where he is the defending champion.