Alexander Zverev’s slide deepened at Indian Wells, where Tallon Griekspoor ousted him 4-6, 7-6(5), 7-6(4) in the opening round—a result that handed a lifeline to the sidelined world No. 1, Jannik Sinner. Sinner, absent from Indian Wells and Miami, is serving a three-month doping ban after testing positive for the anabolic steroid clostebol a year ago. Cleared of fault by the International Tennis Integrity Agency, he still faced a WADA appeal pushing for a year-long suspension. A last-minute deal cut it to three months, but his absence left the door ajar for Zverev to narrow the rankings gap.
Instead, Zverev faltered again. After food poisoning hampered his clay-court stint in South America, he arrived in California touting a hard-court resurgence—only to crash out early. Griekspoor, who toppled Daniil Medvedev in Dubai last month, added Zverev to his giant-killing tally. “It’s mental,” Griekspoor said. “I lost to him five times last year, including a gut-wrenching double-break lead in the fifth at Roland Garros. I’ve had chances, but he’s always edged me out. Today, I’m proud—I fought over three hours, ankle nagging, in the heat, and got it done.”
Zverev’s fourth loss in eight matches since the Australian Open squandered his shot at Sinner’s lead. “I’m playing terrible,” he admitted. “The No. 1 talk? I need to find my game first—can’t win tournaments if I’m out in the first or second round. No excuses. I’m nowhere near my Australia level. I’m just disappointed with my tennis.”
His woes—five service breaks and a 10-6 ace deficit to Griekspoor—signal a steep drop for the world No. 2, still over 4,000 points behind Sinner. Carlos Alcaraz now has a window to close in, eyeing a top-two seed for the French Open. For Zverev, the bigger alarm is his unraveling form, leaving his lofty ranking on shaky ground.
