"There should be penalties for stuff like this", "What a shame" - Fans slam Alexander Zverev's late withdrawal from BOSS Open in Stuttgart

Alexander Zverev was supposed to play at the BOSS Open in Stuttgart but he withdrew on short notice, days after his 2024 French Open final loss to Carlos Alcaraz. Fans were left unhappy with the late withdrawal announcement from the German.

On Sunday, June 9, Zverev played a thrilling five-set match against Alcaraz at Court Philippe-Chatrier. The Geman spent almost 24 hours on court during his French Open run, including over four hours at the final.

He was supposed to begin his grass court season on Thursday, June 13, at the BOSS Open in Stuttgart against American player Brandon Nakashima. After his withdrawal, he was replaced by lucky loser Richard Gasquet who subsequently received a first-round bye.

An X account posted the news of Zverev's withdrawal and fans slammed the German for withdrawing late. Many believed that he could have withdrawn earlier considering his run to the French Open final.

"Why did he not withdraw before... just making the draw lopsided for no reason. Ugh," a fan wrote.

"There should be penalties for stuff like this," another said.

"Zverev lol, what a shame to withdraw at the last moment," a third fan opined.

"100% certain he'd pull out, could have done so Saturday morning," yet another claimed.

One fan said, "There is no reason why two lucky losers couldn't benefit from this withdraw."

Another fan claimed that Alexander Bublik would win the tournament. They wrote,

"Bublik gonna moonwalk into this title nice."

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Alexander Zverev is not ready to transition from clay to grass courts yet

Alexander Zverev at the 2024 French Open.

Alexander Zverev has gone the distance in both of his previous tournaments, winning the Italian Open and putting up a runner-up finish at the French Open.

He was supposed to begin his grass court season just a few days after drawing a close to clay court. However, he does not believe his body is ready to do so.

“I've played a lot of tennis in the last few weeks and reached the final in Paris, where I played five tough sets. I feel that my body is not ready to go from clay to grass now,” he said in a statement.

The German was supposed to be the top seed in Stuttgart and the only player from the top 10 to play in the tournament. It is expected that he will next play on home soil in Halle now, at the ATP 500 Terra Wortmann Open.