Alexander Zverev recently spoke up about the left-handed men’s tennis players who, in his opinion, have elevated their game following the end of Rafael Nadal’s stellar career. Nadal, arguably the most devastating leftie of his generation, bid an emotional farewell to professional tennis after a rather disappointing outing for Spain at the 2024 Davis Cup Finals.
Currently in Turin, Italy for the 2025 ATP Finals, Zverev began his campaign at the year-end event on a winning note. He registered a 6-3, 7-6(6) Round Robin victory against Ben Shelton, who is the highest-ranked left-handed men’s singles player in the world at the moment.
Later, at a post-match press conference, the German reflected on facing left-handed players and brought up the now-retired Nadal. “After Rafa, there was a period where there weren’t any top-10 players who were lefties,” said the World No. 3.
Zverev went on to name several rising left-handed players who have since made their mark on the tour, including Ben Shelton, Jack Draper, Ugo Humbert, and Learner Tien. Both Shelton and Draper are among Zverev’s ATP top 10 rivals. Meanwhile, Humbert is currently ranked No. 37, and Tien, a rapidly rising teenager from the USA, has cracked the top 30.
“Now, of course, with Draper and Ben Shelton, also Humbert — he can play amazing. There are some good lefties again. Learner Tien is playing amazing tennis as well. So I think there are great tennis players, as well,” Zverev added.
### How Practicing with His Left-Handed Brother Helped Zverev Face Lefties
In the same press conference, Zverev revealed how growing up practicing with his elder brother Mischa — a former World No. 25 and a left-handed player — helped him perform well against lefties.
Left-handed players are widely regarded as tricky opponents due to their atypical shotmaking, different groundstroke angles, and spin. Zverev explained, “I grew up with a lefty with my brother. I was practicing with him all my life. If you talk about a typical lefty, he could not be more of a typical lefty if you try. With his serve, how he was playing his slice, how he’s playing tennis, it was the most lefty game possible. I kind of got used to it. Maybe it helps me now.”
Interestingly, it was Alexander Zverev who ended Rafael Nadal’s French Open career last year by defeating the Spaniard 6-3, 7-6(4), 6-3 in the first round.
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*Edited by Sudipto Pati.*
https://www.sportskeeda.com/tennis/news-alexander-zverev-reveals-lefties-stepping-rafael-nadal-s-successors-tour-beating-ben-shelton-atp-finals