Time ticking for Zverev in search for elusive Grand Slam

Alexander Zverev will be the third seed for the French Open, but the 28-year-old German's prospects of winning his first Grand Slam title in Paris are not looking especially bright.

The Hamburg native is making his 10th appearance at Roland Garros in what will be his 37th Grand Slam main draw and will again be one of the headline acts during the tournament.

Whether he can finally become the leading man before time ticks away, however, is a regular topic of debate.

Zverev reached the final last year, losing to Carlos Alcaraz, and the semifinals in each of the three years before that.

He also lost in this year's Australian Open final to Jannik Sinner when he went down with something of a whimper.

It has been eight years since Zverev broke into the world's top 10 and he has spent the majority of the intervening period with a single-digit ranking but never No 1.

Initially, it was the road block of Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer blocking his path, then it was the likes of Daniil Medvedev and the now-retired Dominic Thiem, whom he lost to in the US Open final in 2020.

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Now a sizable gap has opened up between himself and Sinner and Alcaraz, who at the ages of 23 and 22 have already bagged seven Grand Slam titles between them.

In terms of firepower, there appears no reason why the towering Zverev might not get over the line. His serve is a potent weapon on any surface and his backhand is regarded as one of the best double-handers in the game.

But the suspicion remains that Zverev lacks the ability to seize matches by the scruff of the neck and make his power count. Too often he gets dragged into attritional duels that take their toll in the deeper rounds of a Grand Slam.

Zverev admitted that his defeat by Sinner in Melbourne dented his confidence during the following months but his first title of year in Munich in April suggested a strong run on the European clay was brewing.

It proved something of a false dawn though with Zverev losing to Francisco Cerundolo in the last-16 in Madrid and then Italian Lorenzo Musetti in the Rome quarterfinals.

Zverev has a fine pedigree on the Parisian clay though, as witnessed last year when he ended Nadal's stupendous Roland Garros career in round one before taking out the likes of Holger Rune, Alex de Minaur and Casper Ruud en route to the final.

"Last year at the French I played a fantastic match and I came up short against Carlos," Zverev said.

Expect another deep run by the German, but with Sinner and Alcaraz looming large at either end of the draw it could well be a familiar tale of "close but not close enough" for a player who once appeared destined for the summit.