"Actual lion" - Alexander Zverev's girlfriend Sophia Thomalla jokingly hints at a shave after his Geneva Open match

Alexander Zverev’s girlfriend Sophia Thomalla has hinted that she is not a fan of his current hair game by sharing a hilarious image of him looking like a ‘lion’ after his latest Geneva Open match.

Alexander Zverev is currently contesting the Geneva Open. On Tuesday, May 23, he scored a win over American Christopher Eubanks 6-2, 6-3 in his opening match.

The German’s girlfriend of almost two years, Sophia Thomalla, who can’t be by his side at the ongoing tournament due to her work commitments, watched his victory on screen. She was particularly astonished by Zverev’s appearance during the post-match on-court interview.

Thomalla shared her honest feelings about the former World No. 2’s unkempt look by comparing it to a lion’s mane, and hinted that he needs a shave by adding a razor emoji.

"Well .. the lion turns into an actual lion," she joked, referring to his popular nickname of late.

Sophia Thomalla on Instagram

A couple of months back, a meme emerged on social media, comically showing Zverev’s resemblance to a lion.

The Tokyo Olympic gold medalist credited his locks for the parallels.

"It's the hair [laughs] it's the hair that does it for me. I mean, it's obviously funny, I've got nothing to do with a lion, I mean, I know some fans call me that," he said in conversation with Tennis Channel at the Madrid Open earlier this month.

"The lion is my favorite animal in the whole world, so yeah, I do go with it. If that's what the comparison is like, I really do enjoy it," he added.

Alexander Zverev had also confessed that he will be trying a new look by growing his locks out.

"I'm not gonna cut my hair for now. So, let's see what it's gonna look like in a few months," he joked.

It remains to be seen if the 26-year-old obliges to his girlfriend’s latest critique and cuts his hair after all.

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Alexander Zverev reaches 2023 Geneva Open quarterfinals

Alexander Zverev at the 2023 Madrid Open

Alexander Zverev, who is on a comeback journey after his brutal French Open 2022 injury, recently dropped outside the world's top 20 for the first time in six years. The two-time ATP Finals champion has encountered numerous early exits as he attempts to regain his footing on tour.

Zverev is also gearing up to defend more than half of his current ranking points at the upcoming French Open, where he is the defending semifinalist.

The 2020 US Open runner-up will thus hope to reduce his load by making a deep run at the ongoing 2023 Geneva Open.

Zverev was initially not scheduled to compete at the event, but accepted a last-minute wildcard after failing to defend his semifinal finish at the recently concluded Italian Open.

The German third seed will now face China’s Yibing Wu for a spot in the final four in Geneva.