"Know tennis was played before 1990"- Boris Becker questions validity of Alexander Zverev equaling his Masters 1000 finals tally with Italian Open run

Boris Becker recently questioned the validity of Alexander Zverev matching his Masters 1000 finals record following the latter's impressive run at the 2024 Italian Open. Zverev defeated Chilean Alejandro Tabilo to secure his place in the final in Rome.

Seeded third, Zverev kicked off his Italian Open campaign in the second round after receiving a first-round bye. He defeated Aleksander Vukic 6-0, 6-4 in the opening round, followed by straight-sets victories over Luciano Darderi and Nuno Borges in the third and fourth rounds, respectively.

In the quarterfinals, Zverev defeated 11th seed Taylor Fritz 6-4, 6-3 to secure a spot in the final four. In the semifinals, the former World No. 2 defeated Alejandro Tabilo 1-6, 7-6(4), 6-2 in two hours and 16 minutes to earn a spot in the final at Foro Italico, his 11th ATP Masters 1000 final overall.

Zverev will be aiming for his sixth ATP Masters 1000 title and his second Italian Open title, having previously claimed victory in Rome in 2017 by defeating Novak Djokovic 6-4, 6-3 in the final.

By reaching the championship match, Alexander Zverev tied with Boris Becker's record for the most ATP Masters 1000 finals by a German since 1990.

In response to this statistic, Becker took to social media and stated that if the finals he played before 1990 were counted, he would have even more Masters 1000 finals and titles to his name.

Despite questioning the validity of Alexander Zverev matching his record, Boris Becker congratulated his younger compatriot on his success and expressed his support for him to secure his second Italian Open title.

"As I appreciate very much Sascha @AlexZverev reaching the final in Rome( in fact I will be rooting for him to win the title for the 2 time) , I know tennis 🎾 was played before 1990 …meaning all titles won don’t count anymore?!? Just saying…" Becker posted on X (formerly Twitter).

Alexander Zverev will face Nicolas Jarry at the 2024 Italian Open final

Alexander Zverev Internazionali BNL D'Italia 2024

Alexander Zverev will go up against Nicolas Jarry in the final of the 2024 Italian Open on Sunday.

Jarry, the 21st seed, kicked off his campaign in Rome in the second round after earning a first-round bye. He started strong by defeating Italian Matteo Arnaldi 6-2, 7-6(6) in the opening round, followed by victories over wildcard Stefano Napolitano and qualifier Alexandre Muller in the third and fourth rounds, respectively.

The Chilean then went on to secure wins against sixth seed Stefanos Tsitsipas (3-6, 7-5, 6-4) in the quarterfinals and American Tommy Paul [6-3, 6-7(3) 6-3)] in the semifinals to earn his spot in the championship match.

Alexander Zverev and Nicolas Jarry have faced each other six times on the ATP tour, with the German emerging victorious in four of those encounters. Their most recent meeting took place in the quarterfinals of the 2023 China Open, where Zverev triumphed with a score of 6-1, 6-7(5), 6-3.