It’s fair to say that the men’s tennis singles tournament at the Tokyo Olympics did not have the fairy tale ending that Novak Djokovic would have so wished for. The World No. 1 would have had his sights firmly set on adding a gold medal to his bronze from Beijing in 2008, and the tennis odds were firmly in his favour ahead of the competition.
Having won the Australian Open, French Open and Wimbledon already this year, the Serbian was on course for a never-before-seen in men’s tennis Golden Slam — the tough feat of landing all four Grand Slams and Olympic gold. However, Alexander Zverev had other ideas, crushing the 34-year-old’s hopes in the semi-finals before going on to scoop the illustrious gold medal for himself.
It was a victory not many called in the tennis predictions prior to the tournament, with the likes of Djokovic, Daniil Medvedev and Stefanos Tsitsipas all much more fancied than the German. But Zverev will head to the final Grand Slam of the year, the US Open, later this month as a gold medal winner. So, let’s take a look back at how he won the Olympics men’s tennis singles…
First round – Lu Yen-hsun (6-1, 6-3)
Zverev dispatched of Chinese Taipei’s Lu Yen-hsun in just under an hour in the first round. It took the current World No. 5 just 24 minutes to win the first set 6-1. The German took a 2-0 lead and wasn’t fazed as ‘Randy Lu’ pulled a game back to make it 2-1, winning four consecutive games to take the first set. The second set was a little more competitive, as the pair matched each other in the first four games. However, with the set poised at 2-2, Zverev started to pull again — eventually winning 6-3 and securing his place in the second round.
Second round – Daniel Elahi Galán (6-2, 6-2)
It was a similar story for the young German in the second round, as he breezed past Colombian Daniel Elahi Galán in straight sets. The current No. 111 tried to fight back a number of times in the first, closing the gap on a couple of occasions. But when Zverev eventually made it 4-2, there was no looking back, and he went on to win the set 6-2. Galán put up more of a fight in the early stages of the second set, winning both of his service games to give him a 2-1 advantage. However, Zverev went on a run of five straight games to win the set 6-2 again.
Third round – Nikoloz Basilashvili (6-4, 7-6)
Ranked 28th in the world, Georgian Nikoloz Basilashvili promised to be Zverev’s toughest task yet, and that was fairly reflected in the final score. The pair matched each other game-for-game in the first set, but with the scores level at 4-4, Zverev finally pulled away to win the first set 6-4. It was even tighter in the second set. The German looked to have the match wrapped up when he took a 5-3 advantage. However, Basilashvili won two games in a row to make it 5-5, and with another game each, a tie break was forced — which Zverev eventually won 7-6.
Quarter-finals – Jeremy Chardy (6-4, 6-1)
France’s Jeremy Chardy brought the game to Zverev in the first set of their quarter-final, and wouldn’t go down without a fight — constantly keeping the German on his toes and not letting him run away with it. With the first set poised at 5-4, Zverev won the 10th game to secure the set. Despite Chardy taking the first game of the second set, it proved to be a walk in the park for the German, as he went on to win 6-1.
Semi-finals – Novak Djokovic (1-6, 6-3, 6-1)
When drawn to face the in-form World No. 1 Novak Djokovic in the semi-finals, not many would have fancied Zverev’s chances of progressing to the Gold Medal Match. And after the losing the first set 6-1 to the Serbian, the odds were truly stacked against him. However, he fought back well, taking the second set 6-3 and he stunned the 34-year-old with a 6-1 victory in the final set — ending his hopes of that rare ‘Golden Slam.’
Final – Karen Khachanov (6-3, 6-1)
After dispatching of Djokovic, Zverev would have been confident he could get the better of Karen Khachanov, who was representing the Russian Olympic Committee, in the final, and he duly delivered. Taking the first set 6-3 before coasting to a 6-1 victory in the second set in a Gold Medal Match that lasted just one hour and 19 minutes.
