PARIS — Alexander Zverev’s tenure as the No. 1 in men’s tennis started with a 7-6 (5), 6-2 defeat to Lorenzo Musetti in the second round of the Paris Masters on Wednesday, a performance he felt was poor.
“Yeah, I was bad. It’s quite simple,” Zverev said. “This was not a very good match for me, I think maybe one of the worst in the last couple of months.”
He was followed out of the tournament by record seven-time champion Novak Djokovic, who lost 2-6, 6-3, 6-3 to qualifier Rinky Hijikata of Australia.
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The 10th-seeded Djokovic looked in control but lost three straight games from 3-3 in the second set. He remonstrated with his team at the start of third set and dropped his serve in the seventh game. The 24-time major winner was broken again and lost the match when his backhand landed wide.
Djokovic needed to reach the semifinals to stand a chance of qualifying for the season-ending ATP Finals later this month. Only two spots remain for the Nov. 15-22 event in Turin.
Later Wednesday, seven-time major winner Carlos Alcaraz played American Alex Michelsen.
Frustrated Zverev
The imposing German said he should have done much better on such a rapid court suited to his aggressive stroke play.
“The court was very, very fast,” he said. “I actually think that this is the court that it should be.”
Zverev moved to the top ranking on Monday, capping off a fine season which saw him win the first two Grand Slam titles of his career at the French Open and the U.S. Open.
Despite those successes, the 29-year-old Zverev sounded agitated and described feeling “a bit annoyed” about what he perceives as not getting enough credit compared to others.
“The No. 1 status is something that I think every player dreams of,” he said. “But then I feel like I’m the only world No. 1 in tennis history that has to explain why it’s okay for me to be world No. 1, which I find quite difficult because I think I deserve to be where I am.”
Zverev looked out of sorts throughout against Musetti.
The mercurial Italian clinched victory with an ace in a one-sided contest where he had more winners (29-25) and less unforced errors (12-21) than Zverev.
In other second-round play, three-time U.S. Open semifinalist Frances Tiafoe - seeded No. 7 - wasted four match points in a 6-3, 1-6, 7-6 (9) loss to Frenchman Quentin Halys.
Tiafoe’s defeat qualified Arthur Fils for the ATP Finals. He is the first Frenchman to reach the event since Gael Monfils in 2016.
Fourth-seeded Daniil Medvedev lost 6-4, 6-4 to Ignacio Buse.
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